Total Pokemon Ultra Vacation
by Nihilego Fanatic
Summary: 48 contestants, new and old, are subjected to the best vacation of a lifetime in the Ultra Beasts' special vacation island. With the same reward from before, who would win? Who would crack? Sequel to Total Pokemon Ultra Space
1. In With the New

**VACATION TIME!**

 **000**

A familiar jellyfish grinned as she waved at the camera. She was standing on a dock made of cemented gravel.

"Hello viewers!" she started, continuing her clichéd wave. "I'm Nihilego and I'm back to bring you another season!"

"What season, you may ask?" she asked the viewers rhetorically. "Well… our second season! Juvia did her best and won the last one and afterwards, our producers decided to greenlight another season!"

She then cheered happily. "And now, the setting for our second season is… our vacation island! I know… you're confused, you're wondering why we're actually letting them stay on one of the gorgeous islands in the world."

She then chuckled, expression turning darker. "Well… we might as well give them wonderful living accommodations… because of the emotional, physical, mental and psychological damage that this competition would bring!"

A large cruise ship then screeched with a halt as it stopped by the docks. A plank was then brought out of the ship. A large dragon with a large mouth held one end. He then let go. The plank slanted against the wall of the ship.

"Okay… let us introduce our unlucky victims, shall we?" Nihilego asked the camera with a giggle.

The camera panned at the top of the plank. A Trubbish walked down the plank with a determined grin.

"Luther, our runner-up!"

"Oh… this island is actually… pretty," he commented. He then gulped. "B-but, are there any garbage dumps or… any trash can to sleep in?"

"Good luck with that… because we have no trash on this island! Guzzlord is the trash can!" exclaimed Nihilego, tentacles raised.

"I'll take that as a compliment," muttered a voice emanating from the boat.

"Oh…" expressed Luther, looking at the ground gloomily. "Oh well… I guess, I would have to stick to being myself… even if I can't display my creativity."

"Okay… stand at the end of the dock," requested Nihilego. "We have… the other fifteen contestants."

"What about the other thirty-two?" queried Luther.

"You'll just see," giggled Nihilego suspiciously.

Luther nodded, following Nihilego's request.

"The gambler duo slash couple are our next competitors!" declared Nihilego as a Shuppet and a Crobat flew out of the boat.

Izaya tipped his fedora politely. "Nice to see you again, Nihilego."

"Same," said Juvia with a bow.

"Okay… how's life?" Nihilego asked, curiously cocking her head to the side.

"Well… I'm fine," answered Juvia with her usual confused expression.

Izaya chuckled.

"Umm… why are you laughing?" Nihilego queried.

"You'll see," he muttered, tipping his fedora.

"Ookay, just fly to the end of the docks please," requested Nihilego, clasping her tentacles.

Izaya and Juvia nodded, flying to the end of the docks where Luther was standing.

"Crimson is also back!"

A Lucario waved at the jellyfish as she descended the ship. "Hello! How are you?"

"I'm fine," muttered Nihilego. "Crimson, just walk to the others… and be relieved, they're all of the former contestants. The newbies have yet to arrive."

Crimson rolled her eyes. "Thanks for clarifying that."

"Just go," groaned Nihilego, gesturing to the end of the dock where the others were standing.

Crimson stifled a chuckle as she walked towards the other competitors.

"Our next contestant is a psycho… Meowzer!" announced Nihilego.

Juvia and Crimson both shuddered as a female Meowstic climb down the ship with a creepy smile.

"It's very nice to meet you all," Meowzer said with a deadpanned expression.

"How's your psychiatrist?" Nihilego asked the psychic cat.

The Meowstic frowned. "What psychiatrist? She mysteriously vanished…"

"Just go…" groaned Nihilego, face-appendaging herself.

Meowzer giggled as she walked towards the other contestants.

 **000**

 **The confessional was a wooden booth with a camera facing a toilet.**

 **000**

 **Nihilego: Why did we bring back Meowzer? Well... we were bringing back everyone so a missing camper would be… odd.**

 **000**

 **Meowzer: People keep distancing themselves from me… I'm not scary… just plain normal and bleh.**

 **000**

"Ookay… next contestant is… Alex!" continued Nihilego, gesturing to the ship where the Sceptile cockily stood.

Alex climb down the ship, stopping as he reached Nihilego. "Why are we all back with you again?" He looked around. "Well… this island is quite grand and beautiful."

Nihilego giggled. "You're all lucky that we're making you compete in our vacation island!"

"Really?" piped up Juvia, tilting her head in confusion. She then examined her surroundings excitedly. "This just looks like a regular island to me."

Alex snickered. "Nihilego… you did a nice job maintaining it… I commend you."

"Just go to the others," requested Nihilego, clasping her tentacles. "We still have a lot of contestants to introduce."

Alex nodded, walking to the others. He stopped as he stood next to Crimson.

"Okay… next contestants are… Icy and Comf!" stated Nihilego as two more Pokemon stepped off of the ship.

Icy bowed down before the jellyfish. "Salutations Nihilego… I h-hope I won't be a b-bother."

"You won't," assured Nihilego.

Comf rolled her eyes. "That's what they all say…"

"Ookay… just walk towards the others," requested Nihilego nervously.

Icy nodded, following Nihilego's instructions while Comf just stayed, left eye starting to twitch.

"Comf… just go to the others."

Comf reluctantly nodded, floating towards the other contestants.

"Okay… Breon is also back!" continued Nihilego shakily.

The Vikavolt rolled his eyes as he climb down the ship. "Hello… it seems like I'm back…" He yawned before returning to his usual apathetic expression. "Well… I hope I can last long or whatever shit happens."

"Breon, thank you for summarizing," drawled Nihilego, rolling her eyes. "Just… walk towards the others."

Breon snickered as he plodded towards the others.

"Okay… our next contestant is… Randall!" chirped Nihilego as the Incineroar walked out of the boat.

The Incineroar was now healed from his wounds from last month. He smirked at host. "Now that I learned from last season, I'm going to win this season!"

"Let's see about that in the future," Nihilego said with a giggle. "You'll never know what changes we instilled into this new season… it's more fun that way."

Randall stared at the jellyfish, deadpanned. "Your empty threats mean nothing to me… so shut your piehole!"

"J-just stand next to the others," stammered Nihilego, frightened by Randall's words. "W-we still have more c-contestants waiting."

Randall snickered to himself as he followed Nihilego instructions, standing next to Juvia.

"Okay… next contestant… Ashley and Ace a.k.a. The Awesome Sibling Dynamic Duo," Nihilego stated with a cough, attempting to regain her composure.

The Whimsicott floated out of the ship, Vaporeon trailing behind her.

Ashley looked around before turning back to Ace. "Ooh… this island is verdant and lush, can I explore?"

The Vaporeon pushed back its glasses before shaking its head. "No… we must stand with the others. According to TPI logic, the first challenge would occur soon."

Ashley pouted, folding her stubby arms with a huff. "Surely, they would let us explore. How can they hold challenges if we're not even aware with our surroundings."

Nihilego nodded in agreement, chirping innocently, "She's right. We'll give you time to explore but please stand next to the others first while we introduce the other contestants."

Ashley pulled Ace towards the crowd of contestants.

"Ookay… let's keep our introductions short but meaningful," Nihilego mused cheerily. "Ookay… next contestant is… Septh!"

The meteor floated out of the ship without utter a word. He quickly floated next to Breon.

"Ookay… next contestant after Septh is… Poppy!" declared Nihilego, flailing her tentacles cheerily.

The Brionne walked out of the ship, tripping in the process. She giggled as she held her head. "Hiya guys… more people! More people means more love and interactions… joyous interactions!"

"Be careful," came a voice from behind her. Clay the Timburr appeared from behind her with a smile. "You're still drunk… I told you not to drink a whole gallon of booze."

Poppy flashed a toothy grin. "Mom… is that you?"

Clay sighed as he lifted Poppy, walking towards the other contestants.

"Ookay… that was Clay and Poppy sooo our next and final original contestant is… Junior!" announced Nihilego as the blue and black tiger cat exited the ship.

Noticeably, the Incineroar was now sporting a bigger blue hoodie.

He passed by the host without any word.

"Rude, much?" Nihilego muttered to herself.

The glutton exited the ship with a frown. "Why did you let me tend to those… cntestants. I hate being the waiter… I'm supposed to be the one eating… not the one watching people eat."

Nihilego giggled. "You're cute when you complain… but we still have the newbies…" Nihilego checked the watch that she wore on one of her tentacles. "Oh… we're on schedule. The tiltrotor is about to arrive."

As Nihilego said those words, a strange flying machine hovered above the contestants. Flying it was the shy Marshadow.

"Our first newbie... FAVIAN!" declared Nihilego as Donald, who was also on the tiltrotor, pushed off a Slowking.

The Slowking fell to the water with a hard thud. The Slowking swam back to the shore quickly. As it finally reached the shore, it shook the water off of its body.

Noticeably, instead of Shellder, a Shellos was biting onto the Slowking's head. The Slowking extended his arm. "Hello, my name is Favian…" His eyes then focused on the old contestants. "They are very well-dressed, full of beauty… what's that word again?"

"Are you using word association to say that we look fine," drawled Breon, slightly annoyed. He thne looked up towards the Shellos biting into the Slowking's skull. "This isn't natural… it feels… off for some reason."

Favian frowned. "Sad face, tears of sadness, rain clouds… don't judge me just because I'm different, I'm still a Slowking." He then chuckled. "Though, you lightning… thunder… electric bug are a fine specimen."

"Did he just call me a specimen?" Breon queried, turning to Juvia with a dissatisfied frown.

Poppy giggled. "Oohhh… I think he has a crush on you!" The sea lion quickly turned to Clay. "Clay, fight for your beloved's love!"

Clay looked flustered by Poppy's remark. "R-really? But… I belong only to my master… I'm his item!"

Favian chuckled as he walked towards the others. "Battler… Kung-fu… Um… fighting type, worry not of your status… you're not an item, you're Clay."

Clay rolled his eyes with a huff.

"Ookay… our next contestant… WILLOW!" declared Nihilego with a lot of oomph.

Marshawo pushed off a Trash-Cloak Wormadam off the tiltrotor.

The Wormadam grinned as she emerged from the water. "Hello, wonderful people!"

"She's creepy already," Breon whispered to Luther who nodded in agreement.

The Wormadam examined the crowd with a goofy grin. "Woah… not everyone is here but I've already found some of my ships." She giggled eerily. "This would be a fun season!"

Poppy furrowed a brow. "Are you a follower too?"

Willow giggled. "I don't write stories… I make them happen!" Her heart stamp glowed. "I'm what you call… a miracle worker!"

Comf scoffed. "Miracles are just crazy mumbo-jumbos!"

Junior frowned, shaking his head. "Comf… just because you're bitter doesn't mean you can spread your bitterness all over the world."

Comf rolled her eyes.

Willow giggled before standing next to Crimson.

 **000**

 **Willow: Heeheehee… all Comf needs is a bit of love… and some sleep! That always calm me down!**

 **000**

 **Junior: *sighs* I'm still hung up from Comf's words… am I really that scary? Though… she's becoming… rude and shrill.**

 **000**

 **Comf: They should really not stick their noses into others' business… it is disrespecting other people's privacy.**

 **000**

"Okay… our next newbie is… Azure!" continued Nihilego as directly above them, Marshadow pushed an Azurill off of the plane.

The Azurill didn't scream as it took a plunge underwater. The Azurill waved at the other contestants as it emerged from the water. "HI! I'm Azure… where's the leader... or host of this game?"

"That would be me," Nihilego chimed in.

Azure bowed down before the jelly fish. "My name is Azure. It's very nice to see you. I hope that you can make use of my services in some kind of way."

Nihilego blinked. "Ookay… just stand with the others."

Azure nodded, standing next to Poppy.

"Our next newbies… Jester, Metilda and PJ!"

At the tiltrotor, a Shiny Treeko gulped as it stared at the ground from above. "I d-don't think I can do this…"

A Shiny Bisharp didn't say a word as it carried the Treeko before jumping off of the plane.

A Pachirisu, who was wearing a red cape, stared in awe as it watched its companions fall. "It looks like Mega Pachirisu needs to save the day again!"

The Pachrisu jumped off the plane, landing on the water with a big splash.

The Treeko whimpered as it swam towards the shore. The Bisharp and Pachirisu followed suit.

"Umm… hi, my name is Jester," greeted the Shiny Treeko with a weak smile. "I hope we can get along." The Bisharp squeezed his body as it stood next to him. "Um… this is Metilda… she's just too friendly."

Septh paled. "Are y-you okay? You look like y-you're running out of air."

The Pachirisu panted as it reached the shore. "PJ… pleasure… to… meet… you… all."

Poppy tilted her head. "Wowie, that cape radiates the redness of blood… is it not?"

PJ furrowed a brow. "Poppy… it's not red, it's scarlet!"

"Really… looks like mauve," drawled Breon sarcastically. The bug stopped being violent but he gained a tendency to be… a smartass at times. Don't blame him, blame his therapist! "Scarlet is a shade of red so it's red!"

"Simmer down," stammered Clay. "W-we have to respectful to our new friends… we d-don't want to leave a bad impression on them."

Breon sighed. "You're right… though, it's slightly… annoying… I'm not a fan of redundancy!"

Willow giggled. "Love isn't redundant so I know you'll love that."

Breon rolled his eyes with incoherent mutters.

Jester was quickly lifted by Metilda. The Bisharp stood next to Crimson who distanced herself afterwards.

PJ chuckled as he stood next to Azure.

Azure giggled. "So you're a hero? Well… pleasure to meet you."

PJ's eyes darted around the area. "Same…"

 **000**

 **Jester: Metilda can get too overprotective… though, she lets me go to the bathroom alone… but… I just want to be… independent for once.**

 **000**

 **Azure: Well… my new task is to grovel at Nihilego! I need to… get her approval!**

 **000**

 **PJ: If anyone hollers for help, I would be there!**

 **000**

 **Breon: Ugh… my brain is such a complicated mess. I don't know what to do!**

 **000**

"Okay… our next contestant a.k.a. newbie is… Brianna!" continued Nihilego cheerily.

Marshadow pushed a Leafeon off of the tiltrotor after Nihilego's announcement. The Leafeon groaned as it belly-flopped. It doggy-paddled towards the shore, shaking off the water drenching its body.

The Leafeon flashed a cocky grin. "Are the teams made already? I would be the perfect candidate for leader?!"

Azure clapped her hands. "You're the leader? I must bestow my-"

"Woah woah woah… no one is going to bestow their loyalty," Nihilego interrupted, crossing her tentacles.

"Oh…" Azure muttered weakly. "I was just too… overly excited for this moment."

Brianna smirked as she stood next to the Azurill. "Kid, don't listen to that jellyfish… my wisdom is enough to help you win."

Azurill nodded, taking out a soggy notebook and a pen to take down some notes.

"Okay… our next competitive and hopefully sane newbie is… Otis," stated Nihilego as a Stoutland stood near the edge of the tiltrotor.

Marshadow attempted to push the Stoutland but failed to do so. Taking a deep breath, Marshadow levitated the dog before letting go while the dog was levitating in mid-air.

"CURRRRRSSSSEEEESSSS!" screeched the Stoutland, falling to the water.

The Stoutland emerged from the water, fur dripping with water. It shook the water off of its fur then kissed the sand. "My sweet babies… I have returned to your sandy embrace!"

Juvia blinked, face showing her usual expression: confusion. "Is he delusional… he sounds obsessed with sand?"

Otis scowled at the cloth. "My sand is ethereal. A gentle caress can destroy a beautiful grain of sand. You must not underestimate sand!"

"Threaten Juvia and I would skin you alive and sell your organs," growled Izaya with a deadpanned expression.

"My sand can break through the barrier between life and death," scoffed Otis boastfully. "Your hollow threats can't defeat me!"

"Just zip it," groaned Nihilego, hiding a frown behind her tentacle. "We still have more contestants left to introduce. We don't want to waste precious screen time on a nutjob like you."

 **000**

 **Otis: No one understands me… except for my sand.**

 **000**

 **Brianna: With my extensive leadership skills, my chances in victory is huge!**

 **000**

"Okay… our next contestant is… Raven!"

An Absol jumped off the tiltrotor with a crazy grin. With a maniacal glint in it eyes, it swam towards to shore. It quickly padded to Icy with a creepy grin. "Hmm… let me measure your body… I really want to plan someone's funeral!"

"Did they just… accept a Giratina worshipper?!" Randall questioned, blinking in disbelief.

Icy shuddered as the Absol leaned closer. "P-please don't! I'm a g-ghost… I'm not going to die… unless if you want m-me to be double dead."

The Absol chuckled darkly. "You're just an Arceus Worshipper, are you?" His face stiffened. "Giratina doesn't allow any Arceus worshipping fools in her domain."

"I thought Giratina and Arceus are married," pointed out Breon dryly. "From what I heard, they're actually having a good time with each other."

"Your words mean nothing. Actions speak louder than words so I need proof of their relationship!" growled Raven. "If you did find proof, I would spout profanities while burning the proof."

"Yeah… words mean nothing," mused Meowzer nonchalantly. "... I know what you'll say in the first place."

"Ookay… I'm officially creeped out right now," admitted Ace shuddering.

"Um… our next contestant is Walter!"

"I hav-" pointed out Raven before being shut off by Nihilego.

A Whismur hastily jumped off the tiltrotor without any word. Swimming back to shore, he bowed before standing next to Azure.

"The irony, he's a Whismur but he didn't say a word yet," Azure said. "Ooh… I wonder what secrets he hide!"

Raven grumbled as Nihilego removed her tentacle from his mouth. "Shit! Your tentacle tastes like shit!"

"Shut it, Giratina worshipper," retorted Nihilego, rolling her eyes.

 **000**

 **Raven: Is it okay if I kill the hostess? No one can smack talk me like a fucking rebel. Giratina is the pure**

 **Walter: Why do I even need to talk? Talking is irrelevant…**

 **000**

 **Azure: Walter is suspicious… I need to tell my leader!**

 **000**

"Okay… our next contestant is… Flint!" continued Nihilego as Marshadow pushed off a Golduck off of the tiltrotor. The Golduck wore a deep purple bandana with white polkadots.

The Golduck emerged from the water with a seductive glint in its eyes. "Hi! My name is Flint! I hope I can meet a lot of new 'friends' here."

He gritted his teeth as he turned to face the contestants. "Hey boys… and girls, I hope we can get along!" His voice stiffened as he said girls.

Clay smiled warmly. "Awwwww, I hope so too!"

"Clay… I think he's… very dangerous," warned Breon, somewhat nervous.

Flint frowned. "Oh dearies… I have ears too and boy, are they good. Oh well… thanks Arceus that you're not my type."

"Thank Arceus indeed," muttered Breon.

Flint scoffed, hands on his waist. "Dearies, I would just have to check later when everyone is here. I'm covering my eyes so that I won't spoil the surprise."

"Ookay… that was weird," commented Nihilego. "Sooo… we'll just move on to the next contestant… Sophia!"

A Bastiodon was then hovering above the water before plunging into the cold depths below. It growled as it emerged from the water with a scowl. "That guy who did that… he's a total male! Sheesh, males are soooo fucking dumb!"

"They're fucking amazing!" growled Flint, stomping his foot aggressively. "You should learn to appreciate true beauty… you're just jealous, like those other females."

"Females are majestic beings, crafted from the enchanted womb of Arceus," retorted Sophia behind gritted teeth. "You're the delusional one."

"To be frank, you're both delusional," drawled Breon, left eye bugging out. "Let's just shake hands and proclaim our delusions to the world."

Sophia cocked a brow. "Oh… you're one of those male smartasses! Your skills in smartassery won't penetrate through the iron barrier that surrounds my complex mind!"

"Pfffttt… you don't even have a brain," retorted Flint with a smug smirk, which was unlike his usual seductive expression. "Your ugliness shows people your mental health: deteriorating and stale."

Sophia growled. "Males are just fuckers that fuck around with shit that doesn't matter to those fucking males!"

"Profanities are not allowed in this island!"

"You're a woman so you should understand my pain!" groaned Sophia, standing next to Icy.

 **000**

 **Sophia: Flint is going hinder my woman reform. I need to eliminate his sorry ass at once!**

 **000**

 **Flint: What blasphemy is Sophia talking about? Slandering the gorgeous males is… borderline insane!**

 **000**

 **Breon: Boooooyyyy, I thought Clay was bad but these two new arrivals really triggers my temper.**

 **000**

"Okay… we'll just continue before this escalates further," said Nihilego nervously, tentacles fidgeting. "Our next contestant is Luke…"

A Tailow flew out of the tiltrotor with a calm smile before landing next to Nihilego. "'sup, the name's Luke."

"Okay… just stand next to the others," requested Nihilego.

Luke nodded. "Thanks, bruh." He flew towards Clay who shuddered. "You okay? Just chill… nothing would go wrong."

"Oh… I'm just weak to flying types," explained Clay with a weak smile.

Luke smiled. "Bro, just take a deep breath and relax… breath in, breath out."

"Are you a yoga instructor?" Clay asked, furrowing a brow.

"No, bruh… I'm just letting life take its course," Luke answered. "Aaahhhh… isn't that relaxing?"

Clay took a step away from the laid-back bird.

"Our next contestant is… Evelyn!" continued Nihilego, somewhat quickly. There was an allotted time for introductions so she needed to hurry up.

A Liligant jumped off the tiltrotor with a deadpanned expression. It finally emerged the water, yawning nonchalantly. She quickly turned to Nihilego. "Oh… is this where the hellhole is?

"Evelyn, this is our vacation island," explained Nihilego with a smile.

"Woah… the builders must be fucking lame. This doesn't look grand," drawled Evelyn, examining her surrounding. She yawned. "Well… it's a good thing my expectations were low. Take my bags, peasant."

"You don't have any bags," argued Nihilego, propping her tentacles to her hips.

"Then find some and bring it back here," Evelyn drawled with a smug smile. "I'll be waiting for you here… so please move your asses quickly!"

"Stop that!" growled Nihilego, clenching a fist. "Just stand with the others."

"What 'others' are you talking about?!" Evelyn asked. "You're 'others', right?"

"Just go already," groaned Nihilego, annoyed by Evelyn's smartass remarks.

Evelyn yawned as she stood next to Brianna.

"Our next contestant is… Sora!' declared Nihilego cheerily.

A Staraptor flew out of the tiltrotor with a cocky smirk. It landed on the wooden dock with a hard thud. "Hello, my name is Sora and I'm in it to win it!"

"Don't be cocky, there would 47 others going to be competing with you," Nihilego warning, waggling one of her tentacles.

"I'm going to use my skills!" boasted Sora. "I can make it through!"

"Let's see if you're right," giggled Nihilego.

 **000**

 **Sora: Nihilego might be doubtful of my capabilities but I have a fighting chance!**

 **000**

 **Evelyn: I'm quite not inspire to do anything… Nihilego made my standards higher…**

 **000**

 **Luke: Everyone is pretty chill… this is going to be fun… and relaxing, bruh.**

 **000**

"Next contestant is… Maya!" chirped Nihilego as a Gardevoir was pushed off the tiltrotor.

The Gardevoir was playing with a 3DS as she fell. As she neared the water, her body glowed in an eerie light.

She emerged from the water, body still dry.

"Maya, hi there!" greeted Nihilego. Her eyes then focused on the console that the Gardevoir was playing. "Shouldn't that be broken? It should be drenched with water."

Maya blinked before looking up from her console. "Oh… I didn't see you there."

"Um… didn't we say that electronics aren't allowed?" Nihilego reminded the gamer.

Maya yawned, eyes darting to the side. "You can't dominate my life. I need games to sustain my life… it helps me level up."

"Just stand with the others," requested Nihilego, fidgeting with her tentacles.

Maya nodded as she went to stand next to Luke.

"Our next contestant is… Rae!" declared Nihilego.

A Noivern flew out of the tiltrotor with an annoyed expression. It landed next to Nihilego with a hard thud.

"Rae, how are you feeling to be part of this show?" Nihilego queried the Noivern.

"I hate it already," replied Rae with a deadpanned expression. A smirk formed on the Noivern's face. "Though, I know some ways it could be even better."

"How?" Nihilego asked curiously.

"You leave the fucking island, Nihilego," drawled Rae. "Then, it would be a millions times more prettier and cleaner."

Nihilego folded her tentacles with a small frown hanging for the corner of her lip. "Just… stand with the others. I might gain a migraine just talking to you."

Rae scoffed, rolling her eyes. "You're the migraine, Nihilego."

"Why I oughta?!" threatened Nihilego, flashing her middle tentacle.

Rae rolled her eyes, standing next to Sora.

"Ahem… our next contestant is… Violet!" continued Nihilego.

"Wait… an intern is now a contestant?" questioned Ashley, confused.

"No, it's another Violet," explained Nihilego as a Liepart emerged from the water.

"Salutations Nihilego, I hope I can get acquainted with everyone," the Liepard greeted, eyes skimming the other contestants' eyes. "I think I'll have fun!"

"Please stand next to the other contestants," requested Nihilego. "We still have a lot of contestants left to introduce."

Violet nodded before walking to the others, standing next to Randall. She winked at Randall. "Hey there hot stuff!"

Randall sweatdropped. "W-what are you doing?"

Violet giggled before turning around.

"Our next contestant is Hazuki," continued Nihilego, in a somewhat bored tone.

A Delphox was pushed off the tiltrotor but before it can touch the water, the Delphox levitated to shore.

"Sheesh, I hate Pokemon that can fly or float," remarked Nihilego. "They remove the fun in skydiving."

Delphox giggled. "You're a mysterious child of nature. And… you should really brush your teeth, the smell is repulsive."

Nihilego gaped at the fire starter's remark. "How would you know what my breath smells like?"

"I don't but did you see the look on your face?!" giggled Hazuki. "That was hilarious!"

"Just stand next the others," grumbled Nihilego.

Hazuki giggled, standing next to Raven.

 **000**

 **Randall: Violet was looking at me funny. I admit it… it was quite scary.**

 **000**

 **Violet: Oh my… so little time but lots to do, I can't wait to start!**

 **000**

 **Hazuki: Seriously, Nihilego's reaction was comedy gold! It reminds me of…**

 **000**

"Our next contestant is… Sarivia!"

"Can you at least change your wordings when introducing a contestants," mumbled Guzzlord, chomping on a bag of chips. "It can get a tad bit redundant."

Nihilego blinked for a second before continuing. "Fine… um.. let's give a warm welcome to the newbie Salazzle, Sarivia!'

A Salazzle jumped of the tiltrotor with a psychotic expression. It emerged from the water, grumbling some incoherent words. "Whose fucking idea was that?!"

"Sarivia-"

"It's Sari to you!" the Salazzle snarled at the hostess. She approached Maya who took out an MP3 Player and headphones, giving it to the Salazzle. "I fucking hate this show already!"

"Sariv- I mean, Sari, please calm down," Nihilego said to the Salazzle.

"Are you telling me what to do, shortstuff?!" grunted Sari, putting on the headphones. "You're lucky that I'm in a good mood or else I would've beaten you to a pulp."

"O-okay," stammered Nihilego, nervously taking a step back from the Salazzle. "We shouldn't resort to mindless violence."

Sari muttered some curses before kicking forward.

"WHAT THE FUCKING HELL WAS THAT?!" Nihilego exclaimed, face paling a bit. "WHY ARE YOU KICKING ME FROM OUT OF THE BLUE?!"

Sari rolled her eyes.

"FINE! We'll just proceed with the next contestant… our smelly skunk lady, Ruby!" continued Nihilego, nearly out of breath.

A Skuntank was pushed off the tiltrotor as Nihilego said her lines. The Skuntank emerged from the water with a determined smirk. "I-"

"I'm going to win," interrupted Nihilego. "We already know that shtick… most of the people these days are always addicted to victory."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "I'm not like those people! I'm really going to win this!"

"Good luck with that," Sora scoffed.

"Let's see about that!" Ruby smirked.

"Okay, our next contestant is… Atticus the Alolan Vulpix!" Nihilego chirped, clasping her tentacles cheerily.

An Alolan Vulpix jumped off of the tiltrotor with a nonchalant expression. It emerged from the water, unfazed. "Salutations Nihilego…"

"Hello Atticus. It says here on your application that you can tend to be odd and socially awkward, do you agree with that notion?" Nihilego questioned the new arrival.

"I was the one who submitted the application," Atticus pointed out nonchalantly. "So… it's basically admitting that I am odd and socially awkward."

"Um… thanks for pointing that out," Nihilego replied nervously. "Just stand next to the others."

"I'm already aware of that," Atticus said dryly. "I'm just duly waiting for your instructions."

Nihilego sighed as the Alolan Vulpix stood next to Violet.

 **000**

 **Atticus: *takes out a notepad* Well… some of these characters are… interesting… hmm… perhaps, I can at least analyze their behavior.**

 **000**

 **Ruby: I'm what people call a try-hard. I'm just determined… I'll win this!**

 **000**

 **Sora: Ruby better watch herself… let's see who will last longer.**

 **000**

 **Sari: *removes her headphones* I really want to rearrange someone's face... my hands are in need for movement!**

 **000**

Nihilego took a deep breath before continuing. "Our next contestant is… the famous musician: Darren!"

A Rhydon was pushed off the tiltrotor seconds later. It emerged from the water with a unfazed expression. It extended its hand towards the jellyfish. "'sup, the name's Darren. Hope I can get along with you lot."

Nihilego grinned, shaking Darren's hand. "I'm glad too. We want to balance out the cast. We can't have too much psychos."

"I'm not a psycho!" growled Raven. "I'm just a loyal worshipper!"

"Yup… totally a psycho," muttered Breon.

Darren chuckled, taking off his headphones. "Everyone looks pretty cool here…"

"How are your headphones still working?" Nihilego questioned the Rhydon.

"Waterproof," Darren explained.

Nihilego groaned, face-tentacling. "Kids these days are too reliant on electronics. Can't we just enjoy the great outdoors?"

Darren chuckled. "Don't worry… I would show my groove to all!"

"Well… we're happy to find someone enthusiastic among this cast of lowlifes!" Nihilego remarked with a surprised expression.

Darren cleared his throat before opening his mouth to sing. "Hey there Nihilego, I'm here to win. Hope my music will make you spin!" The Rhydon's voice was soothing and melodic. Nihilego's nerves mellowed a bit from listening to the Rhydon's fast beat song. "Well… better stand with the others." Darren walked then stood next to Ruby.

"Okay, our next contestant is Drake!" chirped Nihilego cheerily.

A Gabite was pushed off the tiltrotor. The Gabite hastily swam back to shore, emerging with a nonchalant expression. Drake the Gabite quickly ran behind the other contestants.

"Okay… our next contestant is Serall!" continued Nihilego, unfazed by the fact that Drake didn't introduce himself.

A Kommo-o was levitated out of the tiltrotor, plunging to water with a big splash. The scaly dragon merged from the water with an irked expression. "The water was fucking cold!"

"Calm down!" Nihilego said to the wet dragon. "That's just a little water."

Serall growled weakly. "There was ice in the water and it was fucking painful!"

"Walk it off," Nihilego drawled.

Serall clenched a fist as he stood next to Willow.

"Okay… our next lovely contestant will be… sane hopefully is… Zane!" declared Nihilego as a Zangoose was pushed off of the tiltrotor.

As the Zangoose emerged from the water, I quickly stood next to Drake without uttering any word.

"Okay… it looks like we have a lot of loners," remarked Nihilego, folding her tentacles. "Well, our next contestant is Quentin… though, that name sounds familiar for some reason…"

A Sylveon was pushed off the tiltrotor then the Sylveon swam back to shore. The Sylveon shook Nihilego's tentacles one by one. "Hello! My name is Quentin! It's very nice to finally meet you!"

Nihilego furrowed a brow in suspicion. "Your audition tape was quite intriguing…"

"Really?' questioned Quentin, tilting his head. "I'm actually quite amicable… let's just see as the show progress…"

"Ookay… just go stand with the others… the introductions will end soon," requested Nihilego.

Quentin nodded, standing next to Zane.

 **000**

 **Darren: Well… I'm so psyched to be here! I'm in my groove so I can do this!**

 **000**

 **Quentin: *left eye twitches* Being mister goody two-shoes is very hard! Though… I only need a little more time.**

 **000**

 **Zane: *sighs* Being a loner is really hard… though, I don't know how to open up to others actually.**

 **000**

 **Serall: I was rejected by the wrestling world but mark my words… I would never be rejected… ever again!**

 **000**

 **Drake: I would rather just stay in the sidelines… I just don't want to be with any of these people.**

 **000**

"Our next contestant is Jack!" chirped Nihilego as a Lampent levitated out of the tiltrotor, floating towards the host.

"Hey there, asshole," drawled the Lampent with a nonchalant expression. "I'm excited for the lame things we'd have to do for you lazybones."

"Great… a smartass," Nihilego muttered under her breath. She then forced a grin. "Please stand with the others, Jack."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Your fake smile is quite obvious… don't try to hide your feelings or whatever."

"Just go already!" groaned Nihilego, gesturing to the other contestants.

Jack snickered as he stood next to Willow.

"Our next contestant is…" started Nihilego. Nihilego shuddered as she took a deep breath. "Trevor…"

The campers all shuddered as a Scrafty was pushed off of the tiltrotor. The Scrafty emerged from the water with an insane expression that was usually shown by Raven and Meowzer.

"Trevor, how are you?" Nihilego queried the hoodlum.

Trevor chuckled darkly. "I'm fucking happy!"

"Ookay… just go stand with the others," requested Nihilego, tentacles shaking with fear.

Trevor nodded vigorously, standing next to Jack.

"Can't we at least get long introductions?!" groaned Nihilego, head buried under her tentacles. "We're just getting short bullcrap!"

"D-don't be m-mad," Clay stammered nervously.

Nihilego sighed, shaking her head. "Geez… the stress is filling up my head… oh well… Guzzlord, introduce the last few characters."

Guzzlord nodded, swallowing the food inside his mouth. "Well… the next contestant is Kaiser or whatever…"

A Hydreigon flew out of the plane, landing next to the hostess. "Hello…."

"You look… sad?" Nihilego pointed out, hiding behind Guzzlord.

Kaiser grumbled inaudible curses before replying behind gritted teeth. "Hi Nihilego… Hi Guzzlord…"

"Do you need a hug or something?" Nihilego asked curiously. "I can hug you!"

Kaiser rolled his eyes, standing next to Rae.

"Oo-"

"EEEEKKKK!" shrieked a voice.

Looking up, Nihilego's eyes widened as a Roserade fell towards her face.

"Ouch! Vivian… what was that for?" grumbled Nihilego, hands on her head.

Vivian giggled. "I was just testing out my new device! It… sent me flying towards you!"

"Sheesh… for an intern, you cause a lot of damage," remarked Nihilego, rubbing the back of her head.

"So?" Vivian questioned. "It's not like you actually pay me."

"B-but…" stammered Nihilego but the Roserade walked away, towards the inner sanctum of the island.

"Calm down dear… we still have two more contestants to introduce," Guzzlord reminded the stressed jellyfish.

The jellyfish took a deep breath before forcing a small smile. "Okay… our last male… Lance the Decidueye!"

The aforementioned Pokemon flew out of the tiltrotor with a heroic smirk. It landed on the dock majestically. It bowed politely. "Salutations, I'm the heroic Lance of the heroic land of Pokemon… you must be the damsel, Nihilego."

Nihilego blushed a little. "Oh… stop flattering me. It won't change my opinion on you… I'm very fair and I'm all about justice!"

Lance blinked, furrowing a brow in confusion. "I am the embodiment of justice!"

"Ooh! I've never seen another hero before other than me!" PJ exclaimed.

Lance chuckled. "I'll teach-"

"I'm the better hero!" PJ countered with a competitive smirk. PJ then suddenly gasped in delight. "We can help each other save the world!"

Lance smiled then nodded. "My superhero team would prosper!"

"Our superhero team."

"Yeah! Our superhero team," uttered Lance, standing next to the Pachirisu.

"Okay… our last but not the last: Marina!" declared Nihilego as the last contestant was pushed out of the tiltrotor.

The Prinplup emerged from the water with a cocky grin. "Hello Ultra Vacation! I would be the best winner that would emerge from this game!"

"Just… stand with the other!" moaned Nihilego. "I just want to begin the tour…"

Izaya furrowed a brow. "Don't you have interns to do that job for you? Isn't that the point of interns?"

Nihilego sighed. "Vivian is too busy with her 'evil' contraptions while Donald is just… too incompetent."

Violet licks her lips. "Perhaps, you can hire more personnel."

"Let's just begin with the tour," groaned Nihilego, face-tentacling.

Nihilego lead the contestants to the main area where two wooden log cabins were situated, along with a simple flagpole. One of the cabins had a brown flag hung above its door while the other cabin had a orangish flag.

"Okay… it's time to form the teams," Nihilego explained to the contestants.

"No challenges this time?" Breon questioned, confused. "You're just going to form the teams outright… woah, you must've ran out of ideas."

Nihilego rolled her eyes before continuing. "Ace, Alex, Ashley, Breon, Clay, Comf, Crimson, Evelyn, Icy, Izaya, Jester, Junior, Juvia, Kaiser, Luther, Meowzer, Metilda, Poppy, Quentin, Randall, Ruby, Septh, Serall and Sophia would be the Original Octilleries!"

Sophia looked disappointed as she stood with the other Octilleries. "I hope that the boys in this team would not drag our performances down!"

"Oh please… we have all the veterans," Ruby pointed out. "They have experience so we would win this!"

Jester shuddered a little. "I'd doubt that… we still h-have no idea how the other n-newbies p-play this game."

Ruby sighed. "You're right about that…"

"The remaining twenty four would be part of the Newbie Noctowls!" declared Nihilego cheerily.

The remaining twenty four stood on the opposite side of the Octilleries.

"Okay… let's continue the tour," Nihilego chirped.

"Are we going to stay in those cabins?" Clay queried.

Nihilego shook her head. "Well… only one team would stay in those cabins… the losing team."

"What's with the banners?" Comf drawled, eyes staring at the banners above the cabins' doors. "They look like it determines the team staying in which cabin."

"Well… both teams would be staying in the crappy cabin for now," Nihilego explained, clasping her tentacles. "Since the challenge would occur tomorrow so that we can let you all roam around the island."

"Just continue the tour," Guzzlord said to the jellyfish. "We still have a lot of places to visit."

Nihilego nodded, leading the contestants to another flat area. A large wooden building is situated in the middle of the area and the confessional was located next to the large building.

"That large building is the mess hall," Nihilego said to the other contestants. "That's where the losers would eat."

"Woah woah woah… where are the winners going to eat?" Marina questioned. "If that's the case… I can't eat!"

"Fool, me and my sand would dominate this game!" Otis boasted with a smirk.

"We're in the same team, bozo!" Marina pointed out, hands on her hips.

Otis rolled his eyes. "My sand doesn't deserve to be on the same team as a plebeian such as yourself."

"SAND IS JUST AN INFERIOR ITEM TO GIRATINA'S EYES!" spat Raven, closing his eyes in contempt. "MUAHAHAHAHA! YOUR STUPIDITY IS ACTUALLY AMUSING MY GOD!"

Otis scowled. "You've just been added to my blacklist…"

"Okay… let's proceed to the final area, everyone!" Nihilego chirped, leading the contestants into the woods.

 **000**

 **Otis: Hmm… How should I kill Raven? Suffocating… to generic. Stabbing… too messy. This is seriously a large conundrum!**

 **000**

 **Raven: Otis is one of the world's mistakes… he should be eradicated.**

 **000**

The contestants all stared in awe as they stared at a large villa situated in the other side of the forest.

"Woah! What's that?!" PJ asked, mouth agape.

"That's the winner villa," Nihilego explained to the contestants. "That's also where the hosts and interns stay."

"I'm going to stay there everyday!" Flint said flamboyantly. "And… you boys can accompany me."

"Groooosss," remarked Breon nonchalantly.

"Okay… that's all of the areas that you need to know _for now_ so go and explore or whatever," said Nihilego, rubbing the back of her head.

Seconds later, the jellyfish was left alone in the area with Guzzlord. "Geez… contestants these days are very rude…"

 **000**

In the beach area, Septh and Breon were both squatting on the sand, chatting with each other.

"Sooo… how were you doing between seasons?" Breon queried the Minior who was looking down at the sand wistfully. "You didn't contact me."

Septh sighed, eyes darting around the scenery. "I just want to be left alone… my have become quite confusing recently… I just don't want anything to happen to my friends…"

Breon smiled at the meteor. "Well… I'm glad that you've tried therapy. The emotional and mental damage would actually be overwhelming to some."

"Well… not everyone actually forgive me, Breon," Septh pointed out with a frown. "My stay here would just be limited."

"Well… try to redeem yourself while you still can," suggested Breon nonchalantly.

Septh chuckled nervously. "I wish it was that easy but it isn't…"

Breon nodded, gazing at the sunset in the horizon. "Well… we'll just have to wait and see… the future is quite hard to predict."

Septh nodded in agreement. "It sure it…"

"It really is…"

 **000**

Sophia was inside the temporary Octilleries' cabin, arranging her stuff on her bed. She actually brought her posters and other essentials and kept it safe from being wet. The other people in the room were Icy, Meowzer and Luther.

Sophia scowled at the fact that the males and females would have to share a cabin. It was beyond disgusting. Sophia was a very proud feminazi… perhaps, too proud.

Luther furrowed a brow as he sat on a bed. "You okay? You look… weird awhile ago…"

Sophia scowled. "Well… I would have to stay in a cabin with infernal males… you included! I just want a peaceful afternoon!"

"It looks like someone here is very annoyed," Meowzer commented with a creepy grin. "You should appreciate both genders!"

Sophia scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Oh please… males are dumb, stupid, unloyal, ugly, dumb-"

"You already said dumb," Luther pointed out, folding his arms.

"See! They're also annoying! Like this trashy trash bag!" growled Sophia with a large frown. "They're just so… difficult!"

"Ha! I think you described yourself!" drawled Icy with a rare smirk on her face. "Stop smack talking Luther! That's my boyfriend you're talking about!"

"Traitor!" fumed Sophia, face turning red with anger.

Meowzer tilted her head creepily. "Are you just insecure that boys might be better at things sometimes? You should just learn to accept life as it is."

Sophia rolled her eyes, standing up to leave the room.

 **000**

 **Sophia: There are a lot of traitors in this feminine world… it's so… sad to think about.**

 **000**

 **Meowzer: *giggles creepily* I want to see what Sophia's face would look after she leaves… such a clueless lady."**

 **000**

 **Icy: My timidity is actually decreased over time… Luther helped me so much.**

 **000**

Atticus sighed as he sat by a river that was located in the other side of the island. He took notes of his surroundings. The Taillow chirping, the babbling brook and the tall trees surrounding the area.

All of those observations were quite nostalgic to the Alolan Vulpix for some reason. As he continued to jot down notes, his ears twitches as a the nearby bushes rustle.

Atticus nearly shuddered but quickly regained his composure. "Note to self… better take notes in a quiet environment…"

The rustling stopped. Atticus furrowed a brow. Usually, he would've checked the sound out but he felt that it might be a stupid act.

Atticus yawned, rubbing his eyes. Though he was quite tired, he rarely slept. The idea of sleep frightened him.

Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. "I'll just continue tomorrow…" Standing up, he padded away from the area, notepad in paw.

 **000**

Sora gritted her beak as she flapped her wings vigorously. She was training her flying skills to prepare for the upcoming challenge. Sora was quite good with flying and fighting but she's not exactly the sharpest crayon in the box.

As she used Wing Attack on a nearby tree, she noticed someone looking up to watch.

"Jester, what are you doing here?" Sora queried the gecko who was looking up in awe. "I thought you were always accompanied by that Bisharp, Metilda was it?"

Jester shook his head. "Well… I actually… separated from her… I just want to be stronger… but Metilda doesn't trust me that much."

Sora furrowed a brow as she landed on the ground next to Jester. "Well… you should tell her about your emotions… perhaps, she could give you some alone time."

Jester smiled weakly. "Maybe… I could give it a t-try…"

Sora giggled a little. "Well… go now… I need some privacy to train…"

Jester nodded, running back to the cabins' direction.

Sora sighed to herself. "Well… better continue training…"

 **000**

Night fall came. The island was quiet. Mostly everyone was outside… with some exceptions.

Comf grumbled to herself as she sat on the docks. She was still bitter from the events last season and thus, she had no friends in the game. She heard that the others contestants chatted online in a website called 'Discord' or something.

"Can I sit next to you?" came a voice from behind her.

Rotating her head, Comf narrowed her eyes in suspicion as she faced Quentin. "You?! I've been suspicious of you ever since you arrived on the island! What are you doing here?!"

Quentin internally scowled at the lei but forced a smile externally. "I'm just here to help… you can always count on me!"

"Yeah right," drawled Comf, rolling her eyes. "How many times have I heard that before?" Comf paused to think before replying, "Nineteen times since I was fucking born! Generosity didn't work! Sucking up didn't work! So… I'll just repel everyone with my horrible personality! It's who I really am…"

"Fine… don't blame me if you leave early…" Quentin grumbled, walking away from the Comfey.

 **000**

 **Comf: Fuck him! I can help myself just fine!"**

 **000**

 **Quentin: *rolls his eyes* I'll not even going to try eliminating that Comfey. She's just going to eliminate herself with that horrible personality!**

 **000**

In the Noctowls' cabin, almost everyone was asleep except for a few. Atticus was just sitting on his bed, jotting down notes. Rae was just sitting down, eyes wide open. And Marina was just lying on her bed, head filled with thoughts.

She was quite impressed by the other contestant's skills but… she couldn't admit it outright. It made the penguin feel insecure about herself.

She turned around, eyes focusing on Rae who was just sitting. "I wonder what she's thinking about…" Marina thought to herself.

"I'll just think of that tomorrow…" Marina muttered to herself, closing her eyes.

Then she finally fell asleep.

 **000**

 **Finally completed the chapter. I'm not much of a fan of intro chapters but I hope that you like it. Please review! I'm inspired to write if you guys leave fun reviews!**

 **Things were foreshadowed in this chapter, such as next elimination.**

 **000**

 **Nihilego: Please review!**

 **Guzzlord: It's very delicious!**

 **entity that embodies this world. She would feel regret after I'm done with her!**

 **000**


	2. Out With the Old

**First challenge everyone! Please enjoy~**

 **000**

Juvia yawned as she finally woke up. Most ghosts don't sleep but Juvia does because she doesn't want to be left out. She noticed that some of the other beds were empty. Even Izaya was nowhere to be found.

Yawning, she floated out of the cabin. Evelyn was seated on the steps, staring at the sunrise while PJ and Poppy were playing with each other near the flagpole.

She eagerly floated towards the playing duo. "Can I play too? It looks like you're having lots of fun!"

"Oh… PJ and I were just playing hero," Poppy answered with a short giggle. "I'm the villain, damsel and bystander at the same time so we're not exactly having progress with the game…"

PJ smirked, determined. "Don't you worry! My heroics will save this game from falling to the void of demise!"

Juvia giggled. "I want to cooperate by joining!"

"You're in!" PJ exclaimed, pumping his fists.

"Oh youth… what a cruel stage in life," drawled Evelyn with a nonchalant expression. "It's also quite short… and… very hard times."

Juvia turned towards the Lilligant with a cheerful grin. "Be positive! Smile and the world would smile back at you!"

"You can pursue a hobby!" chirped Poppy, clapping her flippers. "I tried cosplay last night! It was very fun! We should all cosplay sometime!"

A small grin formed at the edge of the Liligant's lip. "You're one amusing bunch… though, your cheeriness is not enough to break me out of this funk…"

"Funk? You're just uninspired," PJ said dramatically. "Bask in my knowledge and you'll be back on your feet in no time!"

Evelyn chuckled dryly. "Well... let's just see if it's enough… I'm going to rest my eyes for a bit…" Evelyn stood up, turning to the cabin before walking in.

Poppy giggled. "Inspiration is one strange word? It might be good or bad… but it's still inspiration!"

 **000**

 **Evelyn: They're quite an interesting bunch but they won't last long in these kinds of games.**

 **000**

 **PJ: I need to do one heroic deed per day so that I could confirm my true heroism!**

 **000**

 **Juvia: Tee hee, this game is actually getting intense… like childbirth!**

 **000**

 **Poppy: Perhaps, I could start working part-time. Being a runaway is not exactly a paying job…**

 **000**

Izaya yawned as he wandered around the area near the Winner's' Villa. He was attempting to be strategic this time. Surely, he was okay with losing but he wanted to put up a challenge to the other contestants to test them.

"Hmmmm… what should I do for this contest?" Izaya asked himself, flying around in a circle. "I have no chance in winning this obviously but perhaps, I could help improve others' chances."

Suddenly, he hears some footsteps. Instinctively, he hid behind some bushes.

A white creature passed by the bushes. Izaya furrowed a brow. The creature was Atticus who was examining his surroundings franticly.

"What is that newbie doing here?" Izaya muttered, eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Hmm… I must watch him closer… he might perform a troublesome deed…"

Atticus muttered incoherent mumbles, jotting down some notes on his notepad. "How interesting…"

Izaya arched a brow in confusion. "What is he writing?"

Izaya nearly jumped as rustling can be heard from behind him. Turning around, he noticed a blue appendage sticking out of some shrubs behind him. "Wha?!"

Turning away, his eyes widened as Atticus was nowhere to be found. "Dammit!"

 **000**

 **Izaya: Atticus is one of the suspicious newbies in the game… Honestly, I have no idea what he's planning.**

 **000**

 **Atticus: *jotting down notes* I can't trust anyone yet… I swear that someone spied on me yesterday… perhaps, I could take a short rest first…**

 **000**

Marina entered the mess hall drowsily. She slept quite late last night. She can't help but think about Rae… the Noivern looked worrisome last night.

Marina pinched her cheeks, shaking her head slowly. She can't think too much. It might slowly break her fragile cocky facade. She took a deep breath, taking a seat next to Raven.

Raven chuckled maniacally as he stabbed his mush with a fork. "Muahahaha! Marina, do you want to cooperate with Giratina's disciple? I'll make you enjoy it! The privilege, the drama, the BLOODY GORE!

"Oh please… my multiple achievements and awards shouldn't be used by weirdo Giratinists!" scoffed Marina, rolling her eyes. "My abilities should be utilized by those worthy."

"If I wasn't in a good mood, I would've killed you already," Raven threatened with a sinister expression, nibbling on a small it of mush. "Giratina is not known for his kindness after all. He's fierce, ruthless and majestic!"

Marina's nose crinkled in annoyance. "Raven, your hollow and empty threats won't be enough to break my sheer willpower and awesomeness!"

Before Raven could reply, Otis enterer the building with a tired expression, sitting across the Prinplup.

"Oh no… the sand psycho is back!" Raven groaned with obvious distaste. "Let me find the bleach… he's in dire need of it… very dire."

"My sand is the beads that make uo the strings of life," Otis retorted with a loud growl. "If you throw sand into Giratina's eyes, he would surely be distracted… so sand is better!"

Raven quickly turned to Marina who was still gaping at the two. "Penguin bitch, who's better? Me or Otis? It's obviously me right?

"Wha?" Marina questioned, face radiating confusion. Marina quickly shook her head, afraid that she might crack. She forced a cocky grin. "I'm better than both of you, bastards!"

Otis gasped dramatically. "My sand can't be beaten by Happy Feet! Sand is very delicate, beautiful and fertile!"

"Fertile?" scoffed Raven darkly. "Sand is just coarse grains… it's also very barren…"

Otis made a retching sound. "Your delusions are sooo ambitious. My sand is tenacious and awesome!"

Marina groaned as she rolled her eyes, turning away from the arguing duo.

 **000**

 **Marina: *rolling her eyes* Otis and Raven are both unbearable… they might actually make me snap and crack… it just doesn't make any sense.**

 **000**

 **Raven: I'm mighty and proud… I'm not afraid to resort to violence. So… Otis should be careful around me.**

 **000**

 **Otis: *takes out some sand, kissing it* Babies, Raven didn't insult you… you're too precious for that plebeian git!"**

 **000**

"Contestants, please head to the beach for the first challenge," came Nihilego's voice through the intercom. "Latecomers would be receiving penalties for their team."

* * *

At the beach, all of the 48 contestants stood with their teams.

"Is everyone ready for this first fun challenge?" Nihilego queried the contestants cheerily. "This first challenge would be quite challenging."

Guzzlord, who was standing next to the jellyfish, took out a gold-coloured ring which could be found in ring toss games. "Tada or whatever… this challenge is a mix of a scavenger hunt, a giant ring toss game and some battling."

"Giant ring toss?" Favian questioned quizically. "That small golden- coloured… painted… ummm… I mean- golden ring isn't gigantic sized."

Guzzlord chuckled as a giagsntic metallic pole sprouted from underwater. "Is this gigantic enough?"

Violet's eyes widended. "Fuck… that's very large… If that pole is large, the rings would very large, I'm not sure that we can toss it… or even carry it."

"Well… psychic types could use telekinesis," Septh pointed out. "So… it won't be that difficult."

"No using telekinesis!" Nihilego added with a maniacal cackle. "We want you all to suffer!"

"Your passion for your job is quite overwhelming," Willow remarked with a creepy grimace. "It had inspired me to try harder with my passion for shipping!"

"Okay… Just let me explain the rules with no delay," Nihilego groaned, somewhat annoyed. She then flashed her usual comical grin. "The challenge is to collect gigantic rings which you'll toss into the metal pole. If you successfully toss the ring around the pole, you'll gain a point, judging from the specific color of the rings."

"Red rings mean 1 point, yellow ring give 2 points, green rings give 3 points and gold rings give 5 points," Guzzlord added with a chuckle. "But… to retrieve the rings, you'll have to maneuver through some traps."

"Carrying the rings would be the true challenge," Sora said, blinking in disbelief. "Even I can't carry that."

"My leadership skills would carry my team to victory," Brianna boasted with a triumphant smirk. "So we must not worry!"

Azure cheered. "Huzzah! Leader Brianna would guide us to our victory and I, Azure would help her!"

"Okay… the challenge begins… NOW!" declared Nihilego as the two teams separated.

"Nihilego… they're right," drawled Guzzlord dryly. "The rings are too large."

"They're desperate!" Nihilego pointed out with a giggle. "They'll find a way."

 **000**

 **Brianna: I'm actually the leader of my ring tossing team back home so we have this in the bag!**

 **000**

 **Azure: *pouting* Well… leader Brianna is so insightful… though she would go soon… I'll see her off too!**

 **000**

 **Willow: My shipping passion is up to an eleven! I should start by listing the perfect pairings!**

 **000**

The Octilleries followed Ruby, who offered to lead, to the middle of the woods, where they began their search.

Ruby turned to her teammates. "So… I suggest that we should split up in finding for the rings so that we could find more rings to win this challenge!"

"But… the rings are gigantic," Kaiser pointed out behind gritted teeth. "I'm sure that I can carry them but the smaller ones like Quentin or Jester would have trouble with this challenge."

"I may be small but I can do large things too," defended Jester nervously, folding his arms. "Trust m-me… I can really do it…"

"How about Quentin?" Kaiser asked, turning to the Sylveon.

Quentin shrugged his shoulders. "I'll just go with whatever happens." He then flashed a cocky smirk. "They might need my help to carry the rings."

Metilda growled at the Sylveon, pulling Jester closer to her.

"Okay, let's travel by trios," propose Izaya nonchalantly. "Three heads are better than two."

"Tell that to an Exeggutor!" Poppy quipped with a giggle. "People with multiple heads have more trouble than people with one!"

"Oh no… where did the extra heads came from?" Juvia questioned in a worried tone. "We need to dig deeper!"

"Guys, we need to be serious," Ruby said in a serious tone. "There needs to be at least one capable member in each trio… Izaya, Juvia and… Metilda."

"I beg to differ," Izaya interrupted, shaking his head. "I suggest to replace myself with Ace on that trio. I'm not exactly strong… my wings are quite fragile, which I use as my hands also… and Juvia can't use telekinesis to help so I don't want to drag down the trio."

Ruby nodded. "Okay… Ace, you'll be with Juvia and Metilda. Poppy would be with Comf and Septh."

"Um… who's the strong person in that t-trio?" Jester queried. "Comf and Septh aren't exactly s-strong…"

"Poppy," Ruby explained. "I'm trusting my gut that she would do well with those two."

Poppy clapped her flippers in joy. "Yay! This would very fun! I've never carried a gigantic ring before!"

"No one else did," drawled Serall with an irked expression. "So stop fucking clap your hands loudly. It's annoying!"

"Serall, simmer down," Izaya said calmly. "We still have a challenge to do. Shake hands with Poppy and be on your merry way."

Serall muttered incoherent grumbles as Ruby continued assigning the groups.

"Ashley, Breon and Jester would form another trio," Ruby declared.

"Jester can't be in a group without me… I don't want him to get hurt," Metilda uttered with a cold expression. "He just can't… he can't evolve… so he can't protect himself."

"Don't w-worry. I'm m-mature enough to p-protect myself," assured Jester, hands trembling with fear. "Metilda… I d-don't want to fuss so much about me."

Metilda sighed, closing her eyes. "As you wish… I would merely find you using your screeches…"

Jester's face flushed with embarrassment. "I do not…"

"Okay… no that's settled, we can continue," Ruby spoke with a stern expression. "Ahem… Kaiser would team up with Sophia and Alex."

"Sacre bleu! Why am I on a team filled with ugly as fuck males!" complained Sophia with a ticked off expression. "You should really perform face, body and feet surgery on yourselves! You all look like ugly neanderthals!"

"I wouldn't want to be in a team with you either," scoffed Alex, rolling his eyes. "I would probably ditch you in the middle of the wild…"

Kaiser growled softly. "I'm still not fine with Ruby being the leader… and Alex is right! Sophia would just be a fucking load to this group!"

Sophia scowled at the dragon. "Bastards… men are bastards! I would to place a fucking billboard so that all males on this island can be informed by their natural treachery and fuckingness!"

"Ookay… just go already!" groaned Ruby, somewhat annoyed. "You don't have to wait for me to finish forming the groups."

The aforementioned trios all separated from the team.

 **000**

 **Kaiser: I have to admit that I'm a bit power hungry… but seriously! Ruby is not fit to be a leader… and that Metilda gal is quite suspicious.**

 **000**

 **Ruby: Geez… being a leader of these kooky bunch is harder than what I expected… I should find a way to get my idea into their heads easier…**

 **000**

The Noctowls, on the other hand, were all gathered near the mess hall. Brianna looked around franticly, checking if there are any Octileries lurking nearby.

"Leader, are we ready to search for the rings?" Azure queried, saluting proudly. "I bet that the Octilleries have commenced their search!"

"How is the Leafeon scoundrel the leader?" Otis questioned in disbelief. "My sand voted for me as leader of these group! Every single grain."

"NO! MY LORD GIRATINA WOULD AWARD WITH LEADERSHIP AFTER I KILL YOU ALL!" scoffed Raven condescendingly.

"SHUT YOUR PIEHOLES!" yelled Brianna, face turning red with fury. She took a deep breath before continuing, "Sheesh… am I in a team filled with underwhelming lame-os!"

"Classic females," drawled Flint, folding his arms. "You have poor taste and you're all very aggressive."

Violet giggled. "I find your delusions to be hilarious!"

"Guys! Let's focus with the task at hand," Brianna growled with an irked expression.

"What if we split up?" suggested Favian with a knowing expression. "That way, we could cover more ground."

Atticus shook his head, jotting down notes. "I suggest now… I suspect that the rings would be too large for a small group to carry, we must proceed with caution as a group."

"Atticus' intelligence stat is quite high," Maya said flatly. "So… I suggest to go with his plan."

"Meh… I'll just leave it to you guys," commented Drake, crossing his arms.

"To compensate, we'll just split into two groups," Brianna declared, closing her eyes in thought.

"Congratulations, you had created an idea on your own," drawled Rae with a smirk. "I'm actually proud of you for once."

Brianna's left eye twitched as she took a deep breath in an attempt to calm down. "Okay… let's just group ourselves into two groups."

"Is this a game of 'The Boat is Sinking'?" drawled Rae. "We need to focus on the challenge, Brianna."

Brianna groaned before continuing to speak, "The first group would consist of Sari, Darren, Otis, Hazuki, Azure, Walter, Lance, Trevor, PJ, Jack, Raven and me. The second group would consist of Flint, Luke, Rae, Favian, Zane, Sora, Drake, Maya, Willow, Marina, Atticus and Violet."

Flint pouted. "I would prefer a males-only team… then we can be alone… together!" Flint giggled creepily. "Yeah… that would be awesome."

"Love only needs two people," Willow pointed out a lazy grin. "Well… unless, you want a threesome or foursome or whateversome."

Sora huffed, folding her wings. "Can we at least be serious? You can do your weird ways after the challenge!"

"Okay… hehehehehe," Willow giggled creepily.

"What places would we have to check?" Favian inquired. "Or… do we just move around randomly."

"Um… group A would check the beach and group B would check the forest," Brianna explained to the group.

"My group would obviously be the victor!" Marina boasted with a cocky smirk. "I would win!"

"Just… let's start," Brianna said as the two groups dispersed from the area.

* * *

Alex, Kaiser and Sophia all walked on the beach, searching for the ring.

Alex sighed as he kicked a rock lying on the sand. "Sheesh, the rings are supposed to be gigantic, right? We should've found it earlier."

"You should've listened to me!" Sophia growled at the gecko. "I have experience in these kinds of things!"

Kaiser furrowed a brow. "Don't lie to me, you heavy fucker! You're just having the same trouble as we are!"

"Oh please, I'm just dumbing it down to your level," scoffed Sophia, turning to her companions. "I'm pretty much sure that you males have no mind of your own, you damn parasites!"

"I'm tired of your bickering!" grunted Kaiser, face seething with anger. "Alex! Restrain me before I knock her block off!"

Alex held Kaiser's two heads. "Kaiser… calm down… I know that Sophia is fucking annoying but we shouldn't just hurt her."

Sophia smirked triumphantly. "The gecko slave is correct in his statement! I'm untouchable to you, peasants!"

Alex's eye twitched as he forced a smile.

 **000**

 **Alex: *bangs his head against the wall* This is unbearable! My survival skills never taught me how to survive a feminazi attack!"**

 **000**

 **Sophia: I'm fucking special, am I? I should be given a Nobel prize!**

 **000**

Group B of the Noctowls were walking through woods in search for the rings.

Maya panted as she leaned against a tree. "My stamina aren't enough for this venture. I better search for the Pokemon Center."

"I'm ashamed by your weak stamina," Marina chided the gamer. "You should train with me sometime!"

"Bruh, chill," Luke uttered calmly. "We still have a lot of time, bruh."

Atticus jotted some notes before opening his mouth to speak. "Hmm… I think we should check someplace open. I doubt that they'll actually hide it in the forest.""

Sora nodded. "Agreed. I figured that I could soar above the trees to find some rings."

"Good idea," Marina remarked, smirking. "Good thing I thought of it."

Sora rolled her eyes. "Sure, you did."

"You people are maniacs," groaned Drake, folding his arms in exasperation. "Let's just go with Sora's idea."

Sora smirked as she spread her wings, preparing to take flight. With a sigh, the Staraptor took to the skies.

Luke looked up in awe. "Woah… that was so cool, bruh."

"Can't you fly too?" Drake pointed out with a blank stare.

"But dude, can I see myself while I fly?" Luke retorted with a lazy grin.

"Guys! I can see a green large object near the mountain!" Sora yelled to her companions on the ground. "I bet it's one the rings!"

"Lead the way!" Zane said.

 **000**

 **Sora: *smirking* I'm quite satisfied that my skills are put to good use! Well… I'm pretty sure that Ruby is doing the same with her team… I can't just slack off.**

 **000**

 **Luke: These dudes all need to chill… no need to rush.**

 **000**

The other group of Noctowls were searching the beach for any of the rings.

Sari groaned as she noticed Otis not even taking a step on the sand. "Otis! Please move! Slacking of during a fucking challenge would just make you a target for elimination!"

Otis scowled at the salamander. "Sand is too delicate to be stepped on!" He then took a purple pouch, pouring some sand into his paw. He quickly plopped the pawful of sand into his mouth. "Mmph… sand is amazing! It has a of uses… and it's quite scrumptious!"

Sari blinked. "Hypocrite! Eating sand is worse than stepping on it!"

Otis chuckled creepily. "My feces would include my sand… it would cleanse the sewer system for sand has cleansing benefits!"

Azure, who was always flocking around Brianna to ask questions, overheard their conversation. She turned towards the duo, waggling her finger. "Sand is merely sediments… some rocks are made of compact sand… so just find some rocks and shove it into your hole."

"While he's doing that, I hope he chokes on sand," drawled Jack with a nonchalant expression. "I mean, sand is just… sand. It's not like it would become different sometime."

Hazuki giggled as she walked alongside Jack. "Well… is your social life even better than his?"

"I'm very sociable!" blustered Jack with an aggravated expression. "I have the best social life in my friend group!"

"That's nice, dude!" Darren remarked, snapping his fingers. "Hmm… it inspires me to-"

"Don't sing," pleaded Jack, somewhat annoyed. "I would rather be slandered than to hear other people's voice…"

"Guys, can't you at least cooperate with the group?!" huffed Brianna, turning to her companions with a dissatisfied frown. Brianna groaned, rolling her eyes. "Sheesh, this group is falling apart and we haven't even started yet with the real challenge!"

Trevor folded his arms, furrowing a brow. "What do you suggest then, my fucking leader? It's not like you're doing anything."

"Um… Jack!" Brianna quickly yelled to the Lampent.

"Yes?"

"Float and see if you can find any rings from the air," Brianna commanded impatiently. "And… Lance can do that too!"

"My heroics have been desired by this lovely damsel!" mused Lance with a smirk. "I would be sure to find those heroic rings to seize victory for our heroic team!"

"I'm nobody's damsel!" growled Brianna.

 **000**

 **Lance: I deserve recognition for my heroic deeds! But… I would stay unfazed from her scolding!**

 **000**

 **Brianna: Ugh, my team is fucking lame! I can't even list all of their flaws… it would simply be too many for me to list!**

 **000**

 **Otis: My sand isn't just sand! It's the sand! They shouldn't just judge my sand based on its appearances! It's ethereal and omnipotent!**

 **000**

Ace, Juvia and Metilda were searching in another area of the forest for the rings. Juvia looked around in awe as they stopped near an abandoned building. Moss grew on the wall of the building and the windows were all shattered. It looked like no one has been inside for a long time.

"Woah! Abandoned ruins!" Juvia remarked with a clueless expression. "Ooh… perhaps, they hid the rings in there!"

"Hmm… perhaps," replied Ace with a slight nod. "They did mention areas that they haven't told us before."

Juvia nodded in agreement. "That may be true. Let's check the ruins, guys!"

* * *

Clay, Izaya and Meowzer were looking around near the mountain.

Clay huffed as he lifted a boulder, checking for any rings hidden under it. "No rocks under here… sheesh, where did they hide them?"

"Well… the rings are going to be gigantic, Clay," Izaya pointed out with a nonchalant expression. "So… it wouldn't be under some rock."

"Rocks… are rocks," Meowzer uttered, drool spilling out of her mouth. "And murder is murder… yeah!"

Clay shuddered a little. "Oh my lord… psychic cat is sending chills down my spine!" He then sighed. "Master would usually comfort me when I'm scared…"

Izaya sighed, giving Clay a gentle pat on the back. "Well… let's just… search somewhere else." He then looked up. "Hmm… perhaps, it's on top of the mountain…"

Meowzer looked at where Izaya was gesturing. A stray tear flowed out of her left eye. "Ah… the mountain… h-heights… what a wonderful sight."

Clay clasped his arms, tilting his head in confusion. "How can we get up there… from way down here?!"

"We fly of course!" Meowzer answered with a creepy grin. She turned to Izaya. "You can use your wings… me and Clay would just a have to climb the mountain since psychic abilities aren't allowed."

Clay nodded, clenching his fists. "Yeah! I've been thought by my masters to scale these kinds of… stuff!"

"Okay… start climbing!" Izaya said to his companions as he flew to the top. "We have rings to find!"

 **000**

 **Izaya: Ah, the sweet fresh air. It had been a long time since I tasted you… *sighs***

 **000**

"Umm… do you know w-where we're going?" Jester questioned Breon, who was leading the way through the forest. "I'm p-pretty sure we passed that r-rock earlier…"

"Don't worry, he knows where we're going," Ashley assured the gecko. She nervously turned to the Vikavolt. "R-right, Breon?"

Breon shrugged his shoulders. "Oh? I thought you were leading the group. I was just spacing out as I walked."

"Thinking bout somethin?" Ashley questioned Breon, crossing her arms. "You're usually so focused… and quite unhinged but you get the job done mostly."

"I'm not exactly a team player," Breon pointed out. "I'm weak at challenges to be honest. I let my anger get the best of me and… a lot of weird stuff happened…" He sighed, shaking his head. "I'm just still emotional… a lot has happened… I'm still caught up on stuff…"

"Umm… w-we're here for emotional support," stammered Jester, feet shuffling nervously. "You can t-tell us and w-we can help you."

Ashley nodded. "You can trust us!" Her tone saddened. "Yeah… we're very trustworthy…"

Breon sighed. "I'm… not inclined to tell others my personal life…"

"Oh…" Ashley muttered.

"Umm… guys… I think I see the rings," Jester said to his companions with a weak smile. He pointed ahead. "Um… I think it was the green r-rings."

Breon and Ashley both went to where Jester was gesturing. Bushes were the only things that stood out in the area.

"Jester, this is just all bushes," Breon pointed out. "Did you mistake a bush for a gigantic green ring?"

Jester sighed, cocking his head towards the ground. "I s-swear that I saw a r-ring awhile ago… I'm t-telling the truth."

Ashley used her stabby arms to cut through the shrubs. "Maybe, it's hidden behind this bush!"

After Ashley finished hacking through the shrub, a hole now lay where the bush used to be placed on.

"Woah… secret hole," Breon remarked. "Let's go check it out… perhaps, one of the rings are located down there."

Jester nodded nervously as he followed Ashley and Breon down the hole.

* * *

Poppy giggled as she continued to sketch on her sketch pad as she followed Comf and Septh. "Guys, found any rings yet?"

Comf moaned in pain as she rolled her eyes. "No… if we did, I would've told you already. Ugh, I'm paired with troglodytes!"

"C-Comf… umm… while we find the rings… I want to umm… ask you about s-something," Septh stammered nervously. "It's like really important."

"Spill," muttered Comf with a cold expression.

"I want to ask for y-your apology," Septh uttered with a flustered expression. "It had been a m-month since Ultra Space and… I really want to apologize for all of my mistakes l-last season…"

"No," muttered Comf.

"W-wha?!"

"Drama bomb!" Poppy chirped, raising her flippers in the air.

"Shut up, Poppy," Comf snarled at the Brionne, taking a deep breath to regain her composure. She then turned to Septh with a scowl and a cold glare. "Septh, I won't fucking forgive you! You used me and… you just threw me away…"

"B-but… I really am sorry," muttered Septh somberly. "Ask Breon… and Clay, they can vouch for me… I changed, Comf."

'Oh my!" exclaimed Poppy with a creepy grin. "Just kiss already! The amount of sexual tension between you two is immense!"

"Shut up!" huffed Comf, face turning red in embarrassment. "I'm not… in the mood for this… this is so fucking annoying… just leave alone…"

Septh sighed, paling a bit. "Comf… am I really iredeemable..?"

Poppy frowned, gripping tightly onto her sketch pad. "Sheesh, you guys are depressing me…" She then grinned. "Then again, depression is an inspiring emotion!"

Septh sighed in defeat. "Let's just… find the rings… I have no time to argue with Comf…"

"It's not worth it," he muttered.

 **000**

 **Septh: I was such a fool… I'm only digging my grave… Comf is a force to be reckoned with…**

 **000**

 **Comf: Stupid fuckers… my business is my business alone! I'm… going to enact my revenge on them!**

 **000**

 **Poppy: Hmm… this inspires me to write a tragedy for once.. a long and sappy tragedy.**

 **000**

Near the Winners' Villa were Ruby, Serall and Quentin who were all searching for the rings.

Ruby groaned in exasperation. "Geez, when I heard that the rings were gigantic, I expected that finding them would be easy… but this is getting boring!"

"Well… they're sadists," Serall pointed out gruffly. "Of course, they wouldn't just hide it in plain sight… they're egotistical pricks."

"Language," uttered Quentin with a nonchalant expression. "Let's just… search somewhere unexpected. Some area that we haven't went to yet."

Ruby paused for a bit before replying, "Hmm… that might be the case. Where do you think we should go first?"

Serall stroked his chin, closing his eyes in contempt.

"Through the woods," Quentin suggested with a weak grin. "Well… we only got to explore the area with buildings so they must have hid it somewhere… on the other side of the island."

Ruby nodded in agreement while Serall rolled his eyes.

"Let's go!" Ruby mused to her group.

* * *

Ashley, Crimson and Icy, on the other hand, were already on the other side of the island. They were currently standing at the foot of the volcano.

Icy looked up at the volcano nervously. "Oh… perhaps, they hid a ring… inside that volcano…"

Crimson pumped a fist. "Let's head into the volcano and find us some rings!"

"Umm… I'm quite scared," admitted Icy, hands trembling in fear. "I might easily melt… ice is weak to fire…"

Luther gave her a hopeful expression. "Icy, you can do this… if you want, I can create a magma-proof suit!"

"Not enough time," Crimson pointed out, folding her arms. "Let's just… leave Icy here while we go into the volcano!"

"W-what?" questioned Icy nervously. "You're a steel-type so you would have an equal disadvantage as me."

Luther nodded. "Icy can come… I know that she's strong enough to take the heat."

Icy stuttered as she nodded. "Yeah…"

"Let's just go…" sighed Crimson.

 **000**

 **Crimson: I'm going to stop playing nice! I need to play smart for once...perhaps, I can form an alliance…**

 **000**

 **Icy: I made myself look like a weakling again… I know that Luther is helping but… I want to show that a shy girl like me can play this game right…**

 **000**

Evelyn yawned as she followed Randall and Junior through the forest. She was attempting to find inspiration for her to return to the dance league.

Evelyn sighs out of boredom. "This is so… tedious…" She quickly beckoned to her companions, "You two, dance for me… I require something that would take me out of boredom.."

Junior blinked, giving the Liligant a blank stare. "Seriously?" The blue Incineroar sighed. "Help our team… then we would dance for you… I'm not even sure if I can dance."

"I danced before," admitted Randall, a light blush appearing on his face. "But… I can't bring myself to perform it on international television."

"Why?" questioned Evelyn curiously. "Is it one of those illegal dances? I'm open-minded… you can perform it in front of me… I just need excitement in my life."

"You're competing on a show for a lot of moolah," Junior pointed out. "What's not exciting about that? There are a lot of things you can do… like you can predict eliminations, participate in these challenges or socialize."

"It's too… lackluster," drawled Evelyn with a nonchalant expression. "I demand satisfaction… I need some zest for my parched tongue."

"Just help us already," groaned Randall, face-pawing. "We still have rings to find."

"Is that the gold ring?" queried Evelyn, gesturing to something behind Randall.

The two Incineroar turned around. "Where? Wait a minute… Evelyn!"

Evelyn yawned with a smirk. "Making jokes is now lackluster…"

* * *

Sari grunted as she kicked a rock. She was lagging behind her group as they all were walking towards the other side of the island. Close to her was Otis who was bumbling about sand again to himself.

"Ugh… how long until the rings?" groaned Sari, removing her headphones with a frown. "I'm getting bored doing absolutely nothing but walk…"

"We haven't even walked that much yet," pointed out Jack with a blank expression. "You're just too lazy."

"HAHAHA! WEAK LEGS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN GIRATINA'S DOMAIN!" Raven enthused with a creepy grin. "THEY MUST AMPUTATED AND STUFFED WITH FEATHERS!"

Sari quickly bit the Absol, making the latter faint on the spot. "NO ONE INSULTS ME OR MY LEGS, ESPECIALLY FUCKERS LIKE YOU!"

PJ gulped. "Um… my cape is in the washes so my hero duties are umm… temporarily unavailable!"

Lance clenched his wings. "One shouldn't resort to violence just because of an annoying teammate! I, the heroic Lance, would smite thee with thy heroism!"

Sari blinked, a psychotic smirk forming on her face. "Bring it, chump! A little birdie like you can't defeat me!"

Lance quickly shot a wave of dark energy at the salamander. "Eat Dark Pulse, you scoundrel!"

As Sari was about to retaliate, Brianna screamed for everyone's attention. "EVERYONE! We still have rings to find so stop dilly-dallying!"

Azure nodded vigorously in agreement. "Leader Brianna is right! We must not dilly-dally or else the other team might get more rings than us!"

"Um… but who will carry Raven?" PJ asked, gesturing to the fainted Absol.

"I can carry him!" volunteered Trevor, grinning. He then sighed, shaking his head. "Nevermind… we'll never know what I might do to that guy…"

Walter raised his hand.

"Okay… Walter can carry Raven!" uttered Brianna, sweating nervously. "Um… let's go now! We still have rings to find!"

Walter groaned, rolling his eyes. "I found a ring…"

"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Brianna chided the Whismur who face-palmed. "What color?"

"Green."

"Where?" Darren queried, looking around franticly. "There doesn't seem to be any rings nearby."

Walter gestured to a gigantic boulder. "There."

"Did you mistaken a boulder for a ring?" queried Hazuki with a soft giggle. "You might want to get your eyes checked."

Walter rolled his eyes. "Haha, very funny… under the boulder."

"Woah! You can see things under boulders!" exclaimed Azure, surprised. "Umm… teach Leader Brianna so she can teach me!"

"Ugh… I don't," groaned Walter, shuddering. "It's a gut feeling…"

Brianna sighed, turning to Hazuki. "Fox, burn that rock to cinders! Do it or else!"

"Are you kidding me?" Hazuki questioned in disbelief. "Fire can't burn rocks, Brianna!"

"It would melt," Brianna pointed out cockily. "Don't question the leader's commands!"

Hazuki sighed before using Flamethrower on the boulder. "This is going to take too long! Darren can just smash the boulder with his strength…"

Darren nodded, taking off his headphones. "Consider it smashed…" As he approached the burning rock, he raised his left fist. "Just one, not two hits, then this rock would be shattered to bits!" He chopped the rock in half afterwards.

Azure blinked. "Um… you just made two rocks, mister… two rocks." She took a deep breath before continuing. "Mister, I suggest that you… crush it so that there won't be more rocks… more rocks mean more problems." Azure used Water Gun on the burning rock, putting out the first. "Use your head, mister!"

Darren nodded, smashing the boulder with his head, shattering the boulder to many pieces. "Is it broken now?"

"Splendid job, follower!" remarked Brianna with a triumphant smirk as she eyed a hole, where the boulder used to sit. "Let's descend the hole!"

Sari growled at Brianna. "Are we just going to descend a random fucking hole without any knowledge of the hole's secrets!"

"Leader Brianna knows all!" chirped Azure cheerily. "She knows all of the holes!"

"Of course she does," drawled Trevor, rolling his eyes. "She has too many of them!"

Brianna growled silently before replying, "Fuck you!"

 **000**

 **Brianna: They're all… too much for my nerves! I should really teach them some manners! It's just… too unbearable!**

 **000**

Juvia looked around the interior of the ruins in awe. The interior resembled that of a school. Metilda coughed from the dusty air as she checked a classroom.

"Guys, found anything yet?" Ace beckoned to his teammates as he stood in the other end of the classroom. "It looks like there's nothing in this room…"

Juvia entered the classroom, shaking her head. "Nothing… we still have more places to check, though…"

Metilda sighed, "We still have to explore the second floor… the third floor and the basement."

"Let's split up!" suggested Ace, pushing back his glasses. "I'll go check the second floor, Metilda can take the third floor and Juvia can take the basement."

"Yay! I've never seen an abandoned basement before!" exclaimed Juvia cheerily. "Ooh… I'll have soo much fun!"

Metilda just nodded in reply.

"Let's start!" Ace said, determined as the three dispersed around the abandoned school.

* * *

Icy continued to sweat heavily as he followed Crimson and Luther down a jagged path from the volcano's crater.

"Are we getting closer to the rings?" Icy asked the two nervously. "I feel like I'm going to melt."

"You could've stayed behind," Crimson pointed out, a drop of sweat flowing down her head. "But instead, you offered to come along."

Icy sighed silently. "I just want to prove that I changed… I'm not the same shy Icy as before…"

"Yeah," Luther agreed with a nod. "She really changed... but she's still Icy and that's why I love her."

Crimson huffed, rolling her eyes. "Let's just get this over with! I don't want to be voted off for slacking off!"

Luther and Icy both nodded.

"B-but where should we look?" Icy asked, fiddling with her fingers. "We should be organized and concise with our search."

"Umm… I'm actually getting ner-nervous staying in this volcano," admitted Luther, remembering the events from last season. The trash bag nervously turned to Crimson. "How about you? Got any ideas?"

"You could build those newfangled gadgets to help our search," suggested Crimson, rubbing the back of her head. "Or… we could just do the old-fashioned way and just look around."

"I'm quite ashamed to say this but I have no materials to create any invention," admitted Luther guiltily. "Well… unless you want a wind chime, I can't actually help with my inventions…"

Crimson sighed, hands clenched into fists. "Well… since we're going to check the whole thing… let's get started…"

* * *

The second group of Noctowls looked around in awe as they entered a hidden grotto, hidden behind some thickets of trees. In the center of the grotto was a bed of leaves, a gigantic green ring lying on top of it.

"Guys, look!" Drake beckoned to his teammates. "There's a green ring over there!"

Willow peered over Drake's shoulder with a goofy smile. "Oh my! We found a ring so quickly that we haven't even got decent sexual interactions yet!"'

Zane and Favian cautiously approached the ring, wary for any traps that the hosts could've set in the area.

Zane traced a claw on the ring. "Well… it feels smooth… kinda nice, actually…"

"Hmm… let's start lifting guys," Favian requested his team. "We should carry it to the beach… that's where the circular object… hole in one… ring tossing would occur. Leaving it here would be too risky."

Violet licked her lips seductively. "Hehehehehe… tell me some of your secrets and I might just cooperate."

Rae shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not helping anyway so if you want to see me, I'll be sleeping on the grass." The Noivern huffed, falling to the ground with a thud.

Atticus muttered, jotting down some notes. "Hmm… this Noivern seems to be lazy and incapable of doing work… yet, I find her gesture to be… a tad forced…"

"Forced?" queried Zane, furrowing a brow. "She's just a lazy smartass. Nothing to see there…"

"Well… let's just start carrying this giant ring!" Marina huffed, hands on her hips. "I don't want to boast but I know that I can carry it but I'm just too modest."

"Yeah right," drawled Sora, rolling her eyes. "Thanks, Ms. Modest."

"You're welcome," answered Marina, ignoring the sarcasm coating Sora's words.

 **000**

 **Sora: Marina is such a show-off… I hate it so much!**

 **000**

 **Atticus: *jotting down notes* I actually studied psychology once… Rae is quite tense about something… it's like… she's worried about something.**

 **000**

Clay, Izaya and Meowzer continued walking. Meowzer and Clay were both still tired from scaling the mountain so they kept their distance from the Crobat.

"Where are the rings?" Clay groaned, hands trembling. "I'm feeling quite tuckered out now."

Meowzer frowned. "I need water…"

Izaya turned to the Meowstic. "Well… I'm not sure if there's any water nearby… climbing back down the mountain might not be a good idea since it would just make you more parched…"

Meowzer smiled weakly. "O-o-okay…" Meowzer then dropped to the ground, mouth foaming with red liquid.

"Oh my! What a wonderful trick!" remarked Clay, clapping his hands. "Red… red… red! My master loves the color red so much!"

"Blood," muttered Izaya. "Clay, she's foaming blood…"

"Let's take him back to the hosts!" suggested Clay nervously. "Maybe, they can h-help!"

"Well… aren't you always serving your master… so if your master's sick, you would help him/her heal? Surely, you'll have medical knowledge," pointed out Izaya, eyeing the twitching Meowzer with a nonchalant expression.

"Um… I forgot," Clay stammered nervously, fingers fidgeting. "I'm actually… quite a scatterbrain…"

Izaya sighed. "I'll just have to carry her…"

Clay gulped as the Crobat lifted the Meowstic with his back, "Umm… are you sure this is safe?"

Izaya didn't reply as it flew to the direction of the camp with Meowzer on his back.

"Woah… that bat is strong," remarked Clay, mouth agape.

 **000**

 **Clay: Umm… gee… I'm quite… nervous right now. I haven't lied for ages. My master told me to be a good boy and I am but… I can't right now…**

 **000**

Juvia looked around the basement in awe. She was quite curious of whatever awaited her. Her eyes widened as she heard footsteps.

"Anyone t-there?" she called out, starting to charge up a Shadow Ball. "I'm Juvia... I mean no harm."

A Ratata emerged from one of the boxes.

"Awwww," gushed Juvia cheerily.

 **000**

 **Juvia: It was so cute! I never knew that abandoned basement were so cool!**

 **000**

Jester and his companions look in awe as a gold ring sat in front of them. They just went down the hole earlier to this hollowed-out space.

"Woah… well, let's carry it," Breon drawled to his companions.

"I'm not sure if it can fit through the hole," Ashley pointed out, folding her arms. "Well… we can make the hole bigger…"

"Umm… but how?" whimpered Jester, hands covering his body as he shuddered. "I'm getting the chills just staying here."

Breon nodded, scratching his chin. "Well...Ashley, you could make the hole bigger by punching or something…"

Ashley furrowed a brow. "Can't you be more specific with that? Punching doesn't solve every problem… I'm not the violent type."

"Um… what if we make the ring smaller?" suggested Jester nervously.

"And how are we going to do that?" questioned Breon smugly. "We pop it like a balloon? We crush it out of existence?!"

"S-sorry," whimpered Jester, looking at the ground guiltily.

"Wait… I have an idea!" Ashley exclaimed with a smirk.

* * *

Poppy frowned as she noticed the tension rising between Septh and Comf. Usually, she would just mind her own business but it was getting quite wearing and annoying.

"Guys, stop arguing!" groaned Poppy, clutching to her sketch pad aggressively. "Sheesh, can't you please just be quiet… I know that you guys inspired me to write a tragedy but this is nuts!"

Comf scoffed, rolling her eyes, "I'll kindly leave… I have no business with you two anyways…"

Septh muttered incoherent words, looking at the ground with blank eyes.

Poppy sighed, rubbing the back of her head. "Gee guys… you are depressing me… I hope that we can find the rings so I can just… laze around…"

No response.

* * *

Quentin, Ruby and Serall struggled to make it past the desert. The sandstorm that was brewing didn't help matters either.

"Why did we have to check the desert first?" groaned Serall, clenching a fist. "There was a snowy area near- oh… yeah, snow…"

Quentin stifled a chuckle. "Well… we'd have to check this place no matter what so stop complaining. You're an athlete so you can take it…"

Ruby giggled. "The Sylveon is right! You're a weakling, aren't you?!"

Serall clenched his fist, gritting his teeth. "I'm stronger than all of you and this sandstorm! I'm a fucking athlete!"

"A cheating athlete," Quentin muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes.

Ruby squinted as she noticed something ahead: a glowing red object. She quickly nudged Quentin, gesturing at the glowing object. "I think that's one of the rings!"

Quentin nodded. "Well, let's go get it!"

Ruby, Quentin and Serall all approached the object, quickly yet cautiously. Serall gripped on the object, tracing a claw on it.

"Hmm… it is the ring!" remarked Serall.

"Well… let's go get it back to the beach!" Ruby proposed to her team.

Serall and Quentin nodded, following Ruby out of the desert with the red ring.

 **000**

 **Quentin: We're not going to win this… it's quite obvious, really…**

 **000**

 **Ruby: We're so going to win this!**

 **000**

Evelyn looked around with a nonchalant expression. They were currently at a snowy area on the other side of the island. Junior was checking the area near an igloo village while Randall checked the snowy forest.

"Geez, I'm getting tired of finding the rings," remarked Evelyn with a yawn. Evelyn sneezed, teeth starting to chatter. "Guuuuys, can we leave now?!"

Randall turned to the Lilligant with a nonchalant expression. "Just help us with this and we can finally leave…"

Junior sighed as he peered inside an igloo. "Evelyn, you can go… we're not forcing you to stay or anything…"

Evelyn nodded, walking away from her companions.

 **000**

 **Evelyn: Well… I'm appreciative that they allowed me to leave. I could've fucking died out there!**

 ***sighs* Perhaps, I could mellow out but I'm just too meh on that…**

 **000**

 **Randall: I'm quite annoyed of Evelyn. She's too fucking lazy for goodness sake!**

 **000**

As the second group of Noctowls head back to the beach, carrying the green ring, they passed through a peaceful clearing in the woods

"Sheesh, this ring must be very light," commented Zane, carrying the ring alone. "It must be made of plastic…"

"You should be happy, dearie," chirped Flint. "I get to see you in action… and oh my, I love it!"

"Bruhs, let's chill here first," suggested Luke, lying against a tree. "We still have a lot of time so… let's chill."

Maya blinked, eyes fixated on the screen of her 3DS. "Well… my battery's dead… I could take a break…"

"No!" protested Marina, hands on her hips. "We still have to get back to the beach with this ring!"

"Well… since it is light, Zane and Flint can carry it back to the beach alone," suggested Willow with a giggle. "And… we can find for more rings in the meantime."

Violet licked her lips. "I can come with Zane too!"

Marina sighed, nodding. "Flint, Zane and Violet, please bring that green ring to the beach and be careful with it."

The aforementioned Pokemon all nodded, walking away from the group with the ring in tow.

"What now, bruh?" Luke asked the Prinplup. "Can we now chill out?"

"No! We still have to find more rings," Marina said to the bird sternly. "I don't want our team to lose the first challenge! That would ruin our image!"

Drake sighed, crossing his arms. "Well then… let's go… we don't want to waste any time…"

Rae perked up a bit. "Nah! Let's just take a break… if we lose… then we lose."

Favian frowned. "Well, we should at least make an effort… let's head out already…"

The group, barring Maya, Rae and Luke, all nodded.

"Well, let's go!" Sora enthused.

* * *

Breon groaned as he laid on the ground. Jester and Ashley used him as a battering ram to make the hole bigger… thankfully, they succeeded after the first try.

Ashley sighed in relief, wiping a bead of sweat on her forehead. "That was surprisingly easy! Good thing that Breon had a hard head!"

Jester nodded weakly. "Y-yeah, thank goodness… Metilda would kill if I got h-hurt. I know… since she did it before…"

Breon groaned, rolling his eyes. "That sucked! That's why I don't want to be a battering ram in the future…"

"Well… let's bring the gold ring back to the beach," Ashley told her team, crossing her arms. "It's surprisingly light so Breon can do that alone while me and Jester can search for the other rings. Is that okay?"

Breon sighed with a nod. "At least, I won't be a battering ram anymore…"

 **000**

 **Breon: Ashley may be a hyperactive psycho… she could've used her fists instead!**

 **000**

 **Ashley: I went through therapy after last season… I got quite depressed because… of some circumstances. Though, I'm quite fine now… I still have… some issues though…**

 **000**

Izaya landed on the beach, Meowzer on his back. The Crobat looked around for the two hosts but Nihilego and Guzzlord were nowhere to be found.

"Shit, where are those good-for-nothing hosts when you need them," grumbled Izaya, flying around franticly. He then heard some strange noise coming from down below. "Hmm...Vivian… she must've built her lair underground…"

Izaya floated towards the docks. He then heard some coughing coming from under the dock.

"W-wa-ater," moaned Meowzer, eyes fluttering open and close. "I… need… water…"

Izaya sighed, flying under the dock. He then noticed a door under the dock. He knocked on the door. "Vivian, open up!"

The door opened, Vivian peering from inside. "Ah! Izaya, welcome to my secret l- did you bring someone else?!"

"Well… we need some help," Izaya explained, tipping his fedora. "Meowzer was… foaming blood…"

Vivian opened the door, allowing the two to enter. Vivian's secret base contained a table in the middle of the room, beakers containing colorful liquids placed on it, and some chairs. There was also a bookshelf with some boardgames.

A Jumpluff hissed at Izaya. "Chaos, are they the hostages?!"

"Discord, it must be the new recruits," pointed out a Bellossom, crossing its arms.

"We must be kind to our guests," huffed Vivian, bloating her cheeks. "And… don't use your secret alter-egos!"

The Bellosom sighed. "Well… I'm Blossom…"

"And I'm Jemma," grumbled the Jumpluff, rolling her eyes.

Izaya sighed, sitting down on a chair. "Well… Meowzer here was foaming blood… do you know what to do for that?"

"Well… we could feed her some of my medicine!" suggested Jemma with a goofy grin. "It works all of the time!"

"Girls… leave," offered Vivian, left hand on her forehead. "I want to have some private time with Izaya and Meowzer…"

Blossom nodded, pulling Jemma with her as she exited the room.

Vivian then cleared her throat, a light blush forming on her face. "Well… how were you? I didn't get to contact you for the last month…"

"Chill… people," Meowzer muttered, closing her eyes.

Izaya cleared his throat, tipping his fedora. "Well… I too, was busy for the last month… but I quite… treasure our friendships…"

"Aw shucks, I helped you… because you're my friend," exclaimed Vivian with a small smile. She then sighed. "Though, the last few days were tedious… being an intern blows…"

Izaya chuckled. "Well… it's quite nice… just hanging out with friends… so this is why Juvia loves hanging out with hers…"

"Well… we should hang out more," pouted Vivian. Vivian then grabbed a beaker from the table, handing it to the Crobat. "Here ya go!"

Izaya nodded, accepting the beaker from Vivian. "Perhaps after the challenge…"

"After the challenge!"

 **000**

 **Izaya: Vivian resembles Juvia sometimes… cheerful… and… that captivating smile… well… I'm quite enthralled…**

 **000**

 **Meowzer: *shudders, holding a beaker* I'm quite fine now after drinking this concoction… ugh, I miss being a stoner… it were simple time…**

 **000**

 **Vivian: *giggles nervously* Izaya is actually a great guy… though, he's scary sometimes. I quite enjoy his company too!**

 ***shakes head* I'm Chaos! I can't actually have friends… r-right?**

 **000**

Junior sighed as he peered inside another igloo. It has been thirty minutes since they got there in the snowy area. Randall was still checking another part of the snowy forest.

Junior huffed, approaching the fellow Incineroar. "Randall, any luck?"

Randall shook his head, releasing a jet of flames from his mouth. "This is taking too long! We've been searching for rings for two hours already!"

"Well… let's check another area," suggested Junior, hands on his pockets. "We've seen enough of this area… Evelyn is still waiting for us too…"

Randall nodded, opening his mouth to reply, "Let's-"

"MALE ALERT!" chimed in a voice.

"Oh no… oh no," groaned Randall, hands on his head. "The feminazi is here…"

Sophia, Kaiser and Alex now stood in front front of the two Incineroar.

Alex crossed his arms with an irked expression. "Hey Randall and Junior… found any rings yet? Fucking Sophia kept walking in circles…"

Sophia scoffed, rolling her eyes. "It's your fault for following me! Fucking males and pointing fingers! I fucking hate you all!"

"Sophia, you're fucking annoying," groaned Kaiser, frowning. "It's getting too unbearable!"

"Guys, let's proceed with the challenge," Randall suggested to his teammates. "The other team must be getting ahead with us."

"I don't want to work with you… MALES!" grunted Sophia gruffly. "I would rather work alone… I'm the most competent member of this team!"

Alex groaned, slashing Sophia with his leaf blade causing the latter to faint. "Geez… she's so fucking annoying!"

"Let's just go," drawled Junior nonchalantly.

* * *

Brianna's group of Noctowls were traversing through an underground cavern which they entered through the hole earlier.

"Waaallltterr, where's the green ring now?" groaned Brianna, somewhat annoyed. "We've been walking for a long time already!"

Darren furrowed a brow as he carried the fainted Raven. "Do you want me to make the time pass by quicker?"

"Leader Brianna just needs rest," Azure uttered cooly. She then perked up with an enthusiastic smirk. "I can carry my lovely leader!"

"You're obsessed," muttered Hazuki with a playful giggle.

Azure rolled her eyes as she lifted Brianna. "I'm just dedicated and loyal!"

"Troglodytes and their weird obsessions," mumbled Otis, kissing a handful of sand. "At least my sand is smart and useful…"

"What if we plan our strategies while walking," Jack suggested nonchalantly. "So that we can make it far… we're all newbies so we have no experience with these kinds of stuff…"

"What if we form an alliance?!" suggested Lance. "I nominate myself as the heroic leader!"

"Ugh… you people are too punchable to be in an alliance with me," grunted Sari, clenching a fist. "Ugh… stupid Lance… stupid game… stupid contract!"

"I only want an alliance with my Leader Brianna," pouted Azure cheekily. "Hazuki, Marina and Sora can join if they like. They seem to be strong players."

Darren snapped his fingers. "I just want to play this game fairly."

"I already have an alliance!" spat Otis nonchalantly. "Me and every grain of sand would kick all of your asses!"

"Fuck this team," groaned Trevor, hands on his head.

"GUYS LOOK!" beckoned Walter, gesturing to something. "IT'S A GOLD RING!"

"WHAT HAPPENED TO THE GREEN RING, WALTER?!" fumed Brianna.

"Umm… Brianna, a gold ring gives us more points than the green ring," Darren pointed out sheepishly.

"Oh…"

 **000**

 **Brianna: I admit it… I'm sometimes a compulsive leader… but at least I'm a good one, right?!**

 ***Outside the confessional*: No, you're not!**

 **000**

 **Walter: I'm usually very silent… but Brianna annoys me so much that… I WANT TO REALLY HURT HER SO BAD!**

 **000**

 **Lance: Hm… perhaps, I can make a heroic alliance with PJ! That would increase our chances in winning!**

 **000**

 **Otis: *grins creepily* You know what I like about sand… well… everything!**

 **000**

Flint, Violet and Zane were returning back to the beach, carrying the green ring. Currently, they were near the Winners' Lodge.

Flint decided to use this time to flirt with Zane. He playfully nudged the Zangoose. "Hey dearie, want to have a nice time with each other?"

Zane can't help but blush at Flint's statement. "W-wha? What do you mean?"

Violet giggled. "Awwww… can I join in? I really wanted to have a one night stand with a gay person!"

Zane quickly distanced himself from his companions afterward.

 **000**

 **Zane: They're complete psychos! I should really stay away from them at all times…**

 **000**

 **Flint: Zane is such a cutie! It's such a shame I would have to dump him afterwards...**

 **000**

Marina's group were currently at the foot of the volcano, searching for any rings.

"Let's check the volcano," Favian suggested to his group matter-of-factly. "Perhaps, the rings are hidden in there."

"My magma safety gear is in the laundry," Maya answered nonchalantly. "I can't partake with this risky activity."

Willow nodded in agreement. "I prefer risque not risky!"

"Bruhs, please chill, the volcano is probably extinct," Luke assured his group soothingly. "Please remember that this is the Ultra Beasts' vacation island so they would not just choose an island with an active volcano."

Atticus nodded in agreement. "I agree with the bird's statement… let's go check it out…"

 **000**

 **Willow: If I die, I'll blame Luke, Atticus and Favian for my death! This world would lose the best shipper…. EVER!**

 **000**

Icy peered into a chamber cautiously. The volcanoes had surprisingly many chambers. Icy sighed a she turned to her companions. "Guys… any luck?"

Crimson shook her head, crossing her arms while Luther just sighed to himself.

"Geez… where are the rings?" sighed Crimson, somewhat annoyed. "I'm fucking melting already!"

"We still have to check the magma chamber," Luther voiced out to his companions.

"Ummm… guys, I think I heard someone," Icy said, worried. "Let's check fast."

* * *

"We still have to check the magma chamber."

"Oh my! The other team must've checked the other chambers," Drake whispered to his companions. "Let's go to the magma chamber asap!"

"Ummm… guys, I think I heard someone. Let's check fast."

"Let's go!" Sora enthused to her companions.

 **000**

 **Drake: One thing they should know. Never talk about your plans in public.**

 **000**

 **Nihilego: I'm back! I hate to admit this but we collectively hid the last rings in some places… this challenge has dragged on for far too long. All we cared about were those joyful interactions!**

 **000**

Poppy kept jotting down some notes on her sketch pad. The awkward silence was quite tedious in her opinion. Her eyes darted from between Septh and Comf as she listed their strengths and weaknesses.

Poppy kicked a pebbles, muttering some stuff to herself. Her new tragedy needed a twist ending. She was a big fan of those… but she didn't like those common clichés.

Though, a tragedy can't happen without any dialogue. Poppy tried again to get her companions' attention. "Guys, talk to me or something!"

Septh sighed. "Sorry for giving you the silent treatment… I was just thinking…"

"Thinking of something nefarious," grumbled Comf with a dark expression.

"Ooh… you guys are in your element," cooed Poppy creepily. "I hate silence so this is a nice start!"

 **000**

 **Poppy: I officially hate those two… well, I hated them before but now it's full-on hate! They're too silent for me…**

 **000**

"One hour remaining, campers!" came Nihilego's voice through the intercom. "So find those rings so we can finally begin with the second part of the challenge!"

* * *

Marina's group all look in awe at the three yellow rings in the magma chamber… the only problem was it was swimming in magma.

"I thought this was an extinct volcano!" Rae growled at Favian and Luke. "We can't get those fucking rings!"

"Drake and Willow can dive into the magma pool and get the rings!" Marina said matter-of-factly.

"STOP!" came a voice from behind.

The Noctowls turn around to find Icy, Crimson and Luther, sweating bullets.

"Those rings are for the Octilleries," Crimson growled, kicking Favian. "We're not going to lose this easily!"

Icy screamed as she used Icy Wind.

Drake and Sora were quickly frozen in place.

"Guys, don't just stand there! Do something!" commanded Marina, shivering from the Icy Wind attack.

Rae shivered as she swooped down towards the yellow rings, grabbing one of them with her talons. "G-guys, I got one!"

Favian huffed as he struggled to stand up. He groaned as he fell to the ground again. Luther used Sludge Bomb at the Slowking's eyes.

"Sorry," Luther muttered as he wobbled to the edge. He gulped as he peered at the magma. He reached for the yellow ring, hands slowly melting from the magma.

Willow shook her head as she used Metal Burst on the Trubbish. Luther gasped as he suddenly felt into the magma pool after impact of Willow's attack.

"Luther!" Icy screeched, floating to the edge. She reached out her hand, waiting for the Trubbish to grab it.

"Icy, stay focused!" Crimson yelled as she dodged a Bubblebeam from Marina.

Luther was finally then pulled out of the magma by Icy. The Trubbish was now covered with burns and blisters.

"Luther, I would defeat the Noctowls for you!" Icy enthused with a frown.

Rae dropped the yellow ring next to Atticus, which the Alolan Vulpix grabbed, quickly exiting the chamber.

Crimson kicked the Prinplup down. "Fuck you, Marina! The Octilleries would win this!"

Marina smirked as she quickly used Ice Beam on the ground.

"Time for m- whoooooaaa!" Crimson slipped on the ice, falling down to the ground, fainted.

Willow giggled as she used Metal Burst at Icy, causing the Froslass to faint due to the heat and weakness to Steel.

"Willow, grab the other rings!" demanded Marina impatiently. "While they're still fainted!"

Luther frowned as he watched all of this before finally fainting.

* * *

"Contestants, please head to the beach! The second part would now commence!" came Nihilego's voice through the intercom.

 **000**

 **Ashley: We didn't find any rings after we found the gold one… well… at least we found a ring, right?**

 **000**

 **Icy: Those Noctowls are so… I can't believe that Willow nearly killed Luther!**

 **000**

 **Willow: I'm a shipper… if everyone is in a couple, where would that put me?**

 **000**

The two teams stood in front of the metal pole from earlier. Nihilego and Guzzlord both grinned at the two teams. Nihilego seems to be holding a button for something.

"Um… what would be the use of the rings?" queried Favian, still shuddering from the fight earlier.

"Well… we were supposed to have a ring toss but we decided to change it up," explained Nihilego cheerily. "It would be ring toss plus a boat race!"

"Wha?!" questioned Zane, confused. "I don't know what you mean."

"Well.. we set up buoys with metal poles attached to them," explained Nihilego. "We'll give you five small wooden rings, if you hit a ringer, you earn a point for your team, the team with the most points win."

"What's the point of the giant ring hunt?" questioned Quentin.

"That's for the advantage," answered Nihilego. "The Noctowls won that advantage which is… a motor boat while the Octilleries got… a rowboat!"

Guzzlord gestured to the docks where a motor boat and a small rowboat were situated.

"How can we all fit on the boats?" queried Icy, glaring at Willow.

"You'll only pick five members to ride the boats," explained Nihilego. "Okay… let's start the challenge!"

 **000**

 **Quentin: Only… a few more days… then I can… start…**

 **000**

"Oh wait! Before I forget, I hid an immunity idol in the island soo… find it and earn immunity whenever you use it," Nihilego added. "Okay… now the challenge can begin!"

 **000**

 **Azure: Oooh! My new plan is to find an idol and give it to my leader! She'll love it so much!**

 **000**

The Octilleries formed a circle with Izaya in the middle.

"Okay, so who should do this challenge?" Izaya asked his teammates. "I'm one of them… but we still need four more."

Clay raised his hand eagerly. "I want to help the team!"

"Okay, anyone else?"

"I recommend Quentin," Meowzer suggested. "He has good reflexes and his ribbons might be useful for rowing the boat…"

Quentin shrugged. "Whatever. It's not like I have anything better to do…"

"I volunteer!" Serall grunted, crossing his arms. "My brute strength would snag us the win!"

"I'll join too!" chirped Poppy, clutching to her sketch pad. "I can swim really well… and I think that can help the team!"

"Okay, Quentin, Clay, Poppy, Serall and I will go for the team," listed Izaya, tipping his fedora.

000

 **Clay: Umm… I remembered being voted off first last time. I don't want that to happen again. I learned… and I got smarter.**

 **000**

 **Poppy: Quentin and Serall are both crooks, in my opinion. It's quite obvious, based on their mannerisms. Well… I'll keep quiet for now…**

 **000**

Quentin, Poppy, Clay, Izaya and Serall stood by the rowboat while Azure, Marina, Sora, Willow and Lance stood by the motorboat.

The Octilleries quickly rode the rowboat. Quentin started rowing the boat with his ribbons. The Noctowls, on the other hands, took a longer time to climb the motorboat before riding off.

"What do we do now, captain?" Clay asked, eyeing the motorboat that was approaching their measly rowboat. "We can't let them win, right?"

Izaya nodded, aiming at one of the buoys. With a huff, he threw one of the rings. It landed on the metal pole.

"Ringer!" Poppy chirped, pumping a flipper.

Willow shot a Metal Burst, nearly hitting the rowboat.

"Willow, keep hitting!" Marina ordered the Wormadam. "We need to win this! Like we really need to win this!"

Poppy pouted before jumping into the water. She hastily swam to the motorboat, grabbing the edge of it. "Not on my watch!"

Lance quickly shoved the wings to Sora. "Sora, umm… toss this into the heroic buoys."

Sora nodded, taking to the skies.

Poppy quickly used Hyper Voice at Marina.

Marina growled as she fell to the floor of the boat.

Meanwhile, Sora dropped one of the rings on the metal pole. "One point for the Noctowls!"

Izaya, upon watching this, quickly turned to his group. "Give me the rings… I can do what Sora is doing…"

"Umm… the rings vanished," Clay stammered nervously. "I think someone… stole them…"

"Serall, Quentin, steal some rings from Sora," Izaya told his companions calmly.

Quentin nodded, jumping into the water and Serall followed suit.

Sora dropped another ring to the metal pole. Two points for the Noctowls.

Serall growled as he attempted to attack Sora using Dragon Claw. Sora dodged, flying to another buoy before dropping another ring. Three points for the Noctowls.

Azure gulped, using her tail to attack Poppy. "No one hurts my lead-"

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEPPPPPPP

"And the winners are the Noctowls!" came Nihilego's voice.

Izaya sighed in defeat as he eyed Sora, who was smirking.

 **000**

 **Clay: Shortest challenge ever… I feel that I should've guarded the rings… ugh, I feel so useless!**

 **000**

Izaya knocked on the door under the docks. He told Vivian that he was going to visit earlier so he wanted to keep his promise. Vivian opened the door with a smile.

"Izaya, pleasure seeing you here," greeted Vivian as the pale Crobat sat down. "How was the challenge? Did it end well?"

"Well… we lost," answered Izaya silently. "I would vote for Sophia… she irks me with that attitude of hers…"

Vivian sighed. "Well… I'm still working on something… it's going to be great!"

"..."

"..."

"This is getting awkward," admitted Izaya, tipping his fedora to hide a slight blush on his face. "Vivian, I have to go now…"

"I prepared some tea!" pointed out Vivian, giggling. "It's not poisoned or anything."

Izaya shrugged. Okay…"

* * *

Breon, Septh and Clay squatted on the beach. In the center was a bonfire that Clay kindly lit.

"Septh, you're doing what?" Breon queried the meteor in disbelief. "You can't just vote for yourself! We're booting Sophia tonight!"

"Breon… if you're really my friend, you'll vote me off," muttered Septh, looking at the sand wistfully. "I can't deal with another season of torment and agony…"

Clay patted the Minior. "Calm down, meteor boy. I'll vote for you… I want to respect your wishes…"

Breon sighed. "Okay…"

 **000**

 **Breon: I'm not voting for him… I'm voting for Sophia… he doesn't deserve to be eliminated…**

 **000**

Nightfall came and the elimination ceremony started.

Nihilego giggled as she faced the Octilleries, holding a tray of poffins. "Twenty four campers and only twenty three poffins, who would go?"

"Just get on with it already!" grunted Kaiser impatiently.

"Spoilsport… but Kaiser, you're safe!" declared Nihilego, hurling a poffin at the Hydreigon. "Poppy, Icy, Luther, Ashley, Ace, Metilda, Izaya and Juvia are all safe!"

Icy caught both her's and Luther's poffins. She sighed as she fed the poffin to the woozy Luther.

"Randall, Alex, Crimson, Junior, Clay, Quentin, Jester, Serall, Breon, Evelyn, Ruby and… Meowzer!" she continued.

Comf, Septh and Sophia remained poffin-less.

"It's time to explain why you're on the chopping block. Comf, you're a bitch to your team," explained Nihilego. "You're still hateful of Septh. There's a lot more… but for tonight, you're safe!"

Comf smirked as she caught her poffin.

"Septh and Sophia… S and S… who would go home?" Nihilego asked rhetorically, pausing for dramatic effect. "And the one leaving is…"

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

"Septh…"

Sophia smirked triumphantly. "So, you males decided to vote for me! But… my strong will and femininity earned me safety!"

"Septh, take your last confessional and go to the dock for your sendoff," requested Nihilego, clasping her tentacles.

 **000**

 **Septh: Yup… I'm gone. I don't have any regrets… I want Breon or Clay to win… well, I'm off now! Goodbye, stupid show!**

 **000**

 **Sophia: I'm too hot to be voted off first! I'm going to kill those good-for-nothing neanderthals for voting me!**

 **000**

Septh gulped as he hovered on the dock. "Umm… what'll happe-"

From out of nowhere, a boot appeared, kicking Septh out of the island.

"Septh is now boot-ed from the island!" mused Nihilego cheerily. "What would happen next on… TOTAL… POKEMON… ULTRA VACATION!"

* * *

 **Septh is now gone! Well… this chapter is interaction-driven. It also foreshadowed next boot and future alliances.**

 **Welp, that's all for now!**

 **Septh: Review…**


	3. Saving Private Interns

**Hello again! It's time for another chapter!**

 **000**

Breon sighed as he exited the crummy cabin. It has been two days since Septh's elimination and he can't help but feel depressed.

"Geez… why it so hard?" Breon muttered to himself, as he walked towards the flagpole. The main campgrounds were currently empty. The Noctowls were all in the Winners' Villa, still resting.

Breon then noticed someone exiting the females' cabin. He silently padded to the cabin, hiding beside the door.

"Breon, hiya!" chirped a voice.

Breon furrowed a brow as Poppy exited the cabin, stretching. "What are you doing this early? Are you going to do something..?"

"I was just up early… I just want enough time to write some stuff," explained Poppy with a giggle. "Early bird catches the worm, remember!"

"Okay…" muttered Breon, letting the Brionne pass.

 **000**

 **Breon: Poppy is doing something suspicious… I better keep an eye on her…**

 **000**

 **Poppy: I decided to form an alliance of my own! I'm going to ask Metilda, Jester, Luther and Jun later. For now, I'm going to the woods! It inspires me to write something!**

 **000**

Icy sighed as she sat beside Luther's bed. The Trubbish was moaning in pain for the whole night. Icy felt weak as she was unable to save Luther from harm.

Luther groaned as he opened his eyes. "Icy… w-what happened? W-who got booted?" He sat up, moaning as he did so. "It fucking hurts!"

"Luther… I'm glad you're okay," Icy sighed in relief. "Though, do you need anything?"

Luther smiled weakly. "I need some rest… some rest…" Luther's eyes then closed after his statement.

Icy sighed, floating from her seat. Giving the Trubbish one last look, she floated out of the crummy cabin.

* * *

Crimson tapped her foot repeatedly, waiting for Icy to exit the males' cabin. She knew that the Froslass was tending her boyfriend. Next to her was Ashley who was humming to herself.

"Is Icy coming soon?" Ashley asked the Lucario smugly. "Or are we just stalking her? I feel that this is not… right."

Crimson shushed the Whimsicott. "Be silent… they might suspect us if they heard us…"

Icy yawned as she exited the cabin. Ashley quickly stopped her.

"W-wha?! What are you two doing here?" questioned Icy, confused. "It's quite early, right?"

"Well...come with me," offered Crimson as she started to walk towards the woods. Ashley and Icy followed suit.

* * *

Crimson, Ashley and Icy now stood in a clearing. Crimson sat on a tree stump while her companions squatted on the ground.

"So… what are we doing here?" Ashley queried, furrowing a brow. "Crimson… you're acting shady right now…"

Crimson cleared her throat before speaking. "I would formally ask you two to join an alliance with me. I want to make it far in this game and with twenty others in this team, we're quite royally screwed!"

"Well… you're quite right," agreed Icy with a nervous nod. "I'm on the lower half of the spectrum… I'm likely to leave before the halfway point of the game…"

Ashley gave her a look. "Well, that's why Crimson called us for an alliance! We're all going to make it far! Though… I might be considered a threat since I made it to the finals." She giggled shakily. "Crimson, shouldn't we... have more alliance mates? Three votes won't guarantee our safety."

"Well… Poppy wasn't in the cabin," Crimson started to explain. "Meowzer is a psycho, Comf is getting too bitchier, Juvia is… Juvia and the newbie girls are quite unpredictable."

"Can't we accept boys?" suggested Icy, nervously looking at the grass. "Perhaps, that would give us a better chance in dominating the votes…"

"I'm not keen on trusting the boys," admitted Crimson, crossing her arms. She shook her head. "Well… for now, let's try to win. In case we lose, let's make a list of targets."

"Well… obviously, let's give Sophia the shaft," Ashley suggested matter-of-factly. "She did nothing but voice her feminazi opinion. It's getting too annoying!"

"Umm… I suggest Meowzer and Juvia," added Icy sheepishly. "Meowzer is getting smarter… and Juvia already won a season."

Crimson nodded in agreement. "Okay… I actually planned ahead before this meeting to show that I can be a good leader. Sophia goes next… then Alex then Meowzer then Juvia then Quentin then Metilda then Jester."

"Umm… can you explain the plan?" requested Icy, nervously raising her left hand. "Some of the contestants you mentioned… I just don't understand some…"

Clearing her throat, Crimson answered, "Sophia is first to go because of obvious reasons. Alex goes next because of his threatening strength and strategy. Meowzer goes after Alex because of her… crazy behavior and surprising intelligence. Juvia goes next because… she already won a season and she's a gambler… she has too much money already! Quentin is pure fodder in my opinion, Metilda is too overprotective of Jester and Jester is too cowardly."

"Well… that's quite right," admitted Ashley, slowly nodding. "Quentin, Metilda and Alex are useful to the team, though… and the newbies outnumber us… and Septh's elimination last time was quite... anticlimactic."

"Well… I hate Alex," explained Crimson, shrugging. "Quentin and Metilda are still in the maybe section for me…"

"Woah… why the sudden hate on Alex?" Ashley asked smugly, furrowing a brow. "You barely interact… did something happen?"

"Well… it happened between seasons," Crimson explained dryly with a nonchalant expression. "We met up one time… it didn't quite end well…"

Icy arched a brow. "Um… what exactly happened? I don't follow…"

"We had a date," muttered Crimson, blushing. "It was quite… weird… Alex was surprisingly a gentleman…"

"Well… speak to him," advised Icy, arms fidgeting nervously. "I feel that you might be perfect for each other… and… follow your heart or something…"

Ashley tilted her head, eyes fixated on the jackal. "Well… love is quite hard to get… Ace found someone… while I didn't… I was just… betrayed."

"By Meowzer?" queried Crimson.

Ashley gave her a 'seriously?!' look. "Hell no! I was on this other show! Total Xtreme Island or something… I met this guy… and he just used me for sex… and Crimson, Meowzer was another story. Don't remind me about it…"

Icy shuddered, looking at the sky wistfully. "That's quite… worrisome… well, I better go back. Luther must be waiting for me…"

Icy stood up, floating away from the clearing.

Crimson sighed as she slouched on the stump. "Ookay… what now? I have nothing else to do. Wanna hang out, Ashley?"

Shrugging her shoulders, Ashley replied, "I would rather talk with you… I'm still… have mixed-up feelings about this season. I was quite psyched to return and see you all again but I'm quite worried that something bad will happen and this season might be worse than the last."

"Well… if something does happen, you can tell us," Crimson told the Whimsicott reassuringly. "We're your friends after all."

Ashley nodded with a weak smile. "Thanks…"

 **000**

 **Ashley: Ugh… I need to put myself together or else… I would have to take a lot of anti-depressants after the game…**

 **000**

Rae grumbled to herself as she hugged her purple pillow. She was inside one of the bedrooms in the Winners' Lodge. The wallpaper were all purple. The room contained a mini-fridge, a small shower room and a comfy bed with purple pillows, a purple blanket and a purple bedsheet. This made the Noivern feel uncomfortable for some reason.

Rae shuddered as she saw something tapping the bedroom window. She went under her blanket. She was usually brave… but after the 'incident', she learned to be cautious. She was quite wary of what might lurk in the night.

Her thoughts were then interrupted by a hard knock on her door. She silently growled to herself as she stood up from her bed. She cautiously approached the door, eyeing the door knob. She took a deep breath before twisting it.

The door then opened. Rae furrowed a brow as Azure stood in front of her, jotting down some notes on her notebook.

"Azure, what are you doing here?" Rae asked the Azurill dryly, slightly annoyed yet relieved. "I was doing something… so this better be worth it!"

Azure cleared her throat with a cheeky grin. "I have a proposal for you! I want to form an alliance with you… and some others… it might help us get far!" Azure raised her hands, signifying her enthusiasm. "It would be a blast! I already asked my leader and she accepted!"

Rae furrowed a brow, left arm lazily leaning against the doorframe. "Why should I join? I'm quite fine on my own so please leave my room!"

"Well! With that attitude, you're quite screwed!" huffed Azure, puffing her cheeks. "You should learn to cooperate with others? You're easy pickings! You basically have no allies!"

Rae sneered at the Azurill. "Easy pickings?! I may not look like it but I'm quite intelligent… and I'm very strong! Watch me!"

Azure giggled stiffly. "Watch it, Noivern! I'm not going down without a fight! Don't underestimate me because of my weakness. Judge me by my strengths!"

"Just leave," Rae growled coldly, glaring daggers at Azure. "I need some time alone!"

Rolling her eyes, Azure bounced away from the door.

Rae sighed as she slammed the door shut. She flew towards her bed, sitting down. Her eyes then darted to the bedroom window. She cringed as she noticed Lance staring through the window.

Nervously, the Noivern turned away.

 **000**

 **Rae: Interactions would just lead to many problems… that's why I decided to seclude myself! However, the others would just barge in with no reason! It's quite annoying!**

 **000**

 **Azure: And I thought I was a spoiled brat! Rae is a rotting pile of garbage… and I always take out the trash! *jots down notes* Still… Rae is quite strange and inconsistent…**

 **000**

Flint wagged his tail as he watched Randall sleep inside the male losers' cabin. His mouth started to drool as he examined the buff Incineroar's physique.

Nearby, Icy had a look of disgust as she watched the Golduck while tending Luther. The other males in the room were all asleep.

"Hey!" Icy called out to the intruder, crossing her arms. "You're not an Octillery! What are you doing here?!"

"I'm a Golduck!" Flint retorted, eyes still fixated on the sleeping Incineroar. "Stop interrupting me! I'm still admiring my surroundings!"

Randall's eyes then opened one by one. Randall growled as he saw Flint watching him from one side of the bed.

"What the fuck, Flint?! What are you doing here?!" Randall asked the Golduck, clenching his fists in anger. He was furious at the fact that someone was just… staring at his body while he slept. Jaxxon and Randall set up some rules on the bed back home. "Just leave before I make you leave through force!"

"Awww… I'm too immersed in your hotness." Flint refused to leave, shaking his head rebelliously.

"G-guys… shush. Luther needs some rest." Icy attempted to shush the two.

Randall shook his head, gritting his teeth. "I'm not going to let this slide! Flint… just leave, you're making a mockery of our sexuality!"

Flint mumbled incoherently before strutting out of the cabin.

Icy shuddered. "That… was scary."

"I want to focus on the game and Flint is not helping." Randall said to the Froslass. "It's quite… annoying!"

"Calm down, Randall," requested Icy, eyeing the resting Luther warily. "Luther is resting…"

Randall sighed, standing up. "I'll be going for a walk…"

Icy nodded. "Ok…" She said softly as the Incineroar walked out of the cabin.

 **000**

 **Randall: Walking always clear my mind… Flint is getting on my nerves recently… and seems to be getting… close to me… ugh! Why do I have too many problems?!**

 **000**

Sora continued to pant as she clawed a boulder with her talons. She was currently training herself for any incoming challenges. As she prepared to claw the boulder once more, her ears suddenly twitched to the sound of yawning.

She turned around, eyes darting around the area until she fixated on Luke, who was leaning against a tree.

"What are you doing here? Sora asked the Taillow warily. "Did Jester tell you about this? I need some privacy for this."

The Taillow grinned lazily at the Staraptor. "Chill bruh… I'm not bothering you. And also… take it easy with the boulder clawing… you might break your leg… a gentle tap is quite enough, bruh."

Sora frowned. "Don't fuss about me. I'm strong enough to take care of myself!"She then sighed as she sat next to the Taillow. "You should worry about yourself…"

"Sora, was it? I'm just here to chill, bruh." Luke mused to the Staraptor with a warm and welcoming grin. "Pretend that I'm not here and continue with your training, dude."

Sora furrowed a brow, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. "Ookay… but I'll be watching you…"

"Okay…"

* * *

Junior grunted as he kicked a giant boulder repeatedly in the middle of the clearing. He was not wearing his hoodie as he trained. Watching him was Metilda who was hugging Jester protectively.

"Umm… can you let go of me now?" pleaded Jester, face turning red as Metilda continued to hug him. "I'm… running out of air… and your blades… are really sharp…"

Metilda slightly loosed her grip. "My apologies. I must've been carried away… though, I would be more careful."

Junior wiped off the sweat on his face. "That's it for today…" He turned to his companions. "Ready to leave?"

Jester shakily shook his head. "P-Poppy asked for us to wait earlier… she said that she'll come here to talk about something."

"It's probably an alliance," muttered Metilda, crossing her arms. "I personally don't want to join… but I need to make sure that Jester is safe…"

"Poppy is rad. You can trust her," assured Junior, blushing as he folded his arms. "I would know… since… umm… let's change the subject…"

"Ok-"

Before Jester could continue, Poppy emerged from the bushes with a creepy grin.

"Hello people! It seems that we have perfect attendance for today!" chirped Poppy, stretching her flippers cheerily. "I have gathered you all for a yaoi reading… and an alliance!"

"Why so?" Junior queried his lover, wiping off some sweat on his body with a spare towel that Metilda brought.

Poppy tapped her chin with a goofy grin. "Obviously, there are 48 contestants in this game… and now there are 47. We need allies to make it further! I want to make merge this time!"

"Well… four people are not enough to vote against nineteen others." Metilda pointed out, somberly. "Shouldn't we have more allies?"

"Well, I was going to ask Luther… but he's still injured," explained Poppy with a pout. "So… we have to cope with four members."

"Umm… will we b-be an evil alliance?" Jester queried, slightly stuttering. "I'm not s-sure if I can… cope with that."

"Well… if it comes to that… or if our alliance is in jeopardy, we need to resort to… sabotage," explained Poppy, still maintaining her goofy grin. "Though… I'm quite fine with foul play. That is the true purpose of this competition!"

Junior sighed, nodding. "I have to agree… it's allowed… so I won't protest…"

"Okie dokie! For now, let's vote for Sophia," chirped Poppy innocently. "She's one of the weakest members of our team… and I can't talk to her without her saying 'fucking males'..."

"Well… I understand," muttered Metilda. "You do write yaoi… you must be very offended that she hated… males… and males' love."

Poppy giggled. "Thanks for understanding! That's all for now!"

 **000**

 **Poppy: I don't hate Sophia but her hate of males in a oddity…**

 **000**

 **Junior: *starting to wear his hoodie* Hmm… forming an alliance is a good idea… it might help us make it far and win this!**

 **000**

Maya blinked as she eyed the dark screens of her 3DS. She was currently sitting in the dining room of the villa. Sitting across her were Darren and Otis.

Darren warily eyed the Gardevoir. "Yo… are you going to eat or what?" He then eyed the plate of pancakes in front of the gamer. "Your pancakes are getting cold."

"I'm not hungry… my… battery… is dead," mumbled Maya with a nonchalant expression. She then placed her gaming console on the table, grabbing the fork with her free hand. "I hope… that my power level is high enough to stab through this plate of pancakes!"

Otis chuckled as he sprinkled a handful of sand onto his plate of scrambled eggs. "Sand is delicious… it makes everything delicious!"

Darren grinned weakly. "Sure it does, Otis. Though… it might be unhealthy…"

Otis sneered at the Rhydon. "What foul language are you speaking? My sand is omnipotent and ethereal! It knows all! So stop smack-talking it, it has feelings too!"

"Sand communication is still locked," muttered Maya, stabbing her pancakes with the fork. "I need to level up in order to achieve that ability."

Otis chuckled darkly. "Sand communication is not required. Sand is ethereal. Sand is omnipotent. Sand can't be washed away by the waters of danger…"

"Okay… thanks for the info," Darren stammered nervously, removing his headphones. "I doubt that we'll need it though. Though, I appreciate your appreciation of sand. It reminds of my appreciation for music."

Otis smirked. "Why thank you! My sand appreciates your opinion! My sand tells me to include you in my future alliance… me and my sand!"

Darren smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Sure man… whatever you say."

 **000**

 **Otis: As a ground type, Darren is the one who understands sand! It's his blood relative for goodness sake! Sand is just a vessel… for the power that lies within…**

 **000**

 **Darren: *rubbing the back of his head* Well… I don't know what I did… but I'm quite glad I made Otis happy. Even if he's quite… eccentric.**

 **000**

 **Maya: I… need to level up. I'm probably one of the lower-levelled members of this team. I need to start training… or else I might get booted.**

 **000**

Meowzer groaned as she wobbled into the empty mess hall. She sighed as she sat on the table nearest to the door.

Vivian exited the kitchen, holding a tray with a beaker of strange liquid from before. She giggled as she placed it next to Meowzer. "How are you holding out? Is your tummy feeling okay now?"

Meowzer grumbled as she held her head in pain. "It still hurts… ugh, do you have any cigarette… or weed… or pot at least?!"

"Awww… are you going to return to whole habits?" queried Vivian, attempting to show an evil grin. "Well… I might have some hidden…"

Meowzer grinned, sagging lines somewhat vanishing. "I would like that… very much."

Vivian grinned, taking out a packet, giving to the Meowstic. "Don't tell… and please proclaim my evil for I am Chaos!"

Meowzer grinned, taking the packet before running out of the mess hall.

Vivian then sighed as she sat down. "Oh my… am I actually helping people… I'm Chaos so why do I keep helping them for some reason…"

 **000**

 **Vivian: I am an evil mastermind! Helping Izaya and Meowzer are my only good deeds! Watch out for this intern is about to spark some mayhem!**

 **000**

 **Meowzer: *breathes out a puff of smoke* Man, this stuff is good. I'm officially enthralled…**

 ***frowns* But… I must hide this. My mind is still intact… so I mustn't overdo it...**

 **000**

Juvia yawned as she exited her cabin. She was going to explore the island today so that she can familiarize herself with her surroundings. The main campgrounds were currently empty, no contestant in plain sight.

Juvia floated to the beach. She grinned as she saw Izaya sitting on the sand, staring at the water wistfully. Stifling a giggle, she sat next to the bat.

"How are ya, Izzy?" Juvia asked the Crobat with a playful expression. She then giggled as she stared at the water. "You must be thinking of something… I know that expression of yours!"

Izaya sighed, remembering his visit to Vivian's base yesterday. "It's nothing… I'm just thinking about strategy… for the competition."

Juvia giggled, making Izaya smile warmly. "Well… we can talk about that… but for now, let's talk about stuff… it's quite early so let's talk while we still can, Izzy!"

Izaya chuckled, blushing. "Well of course."

"Okay! Well… I explored some ruins in the woods during the last challenge!" enthused Juvia cheerily. She then turned to Izaya. "What did you do last time?"

Izaya smiled at the Shuppet. "I… did the challenge…"

 **000**

 **Izaya: Juvia is very cute… and welcoming… I should tell her later… I still have to think about something…**

 **000**

 **Juvia: Izzy may look threatening but he's actually a sweetheart! That's why I love him so much!**

 **000**

Kaiser grumbled as he tossed his pillow off of the bed. He was muttering incoherent mumbles as he slept. Clay gave the sleeping Hydreigon a concerned look as he fluffed his pillows.

"Poor guy." Clay muttered to himself. "I wonder what's going on inside his head…"

Kaiser's eye suddenly opened. "No… NO!" He growled as he sat on his bed with a scowl. "I can't lose… it wasn't my fault…"

"K-Kaiser, are you okay?" Clay queried the Hydreigon with concern. "You look… troubled. My master taught me how to deal with t-these kinds of things so you can count on me…"

Kaiser sighed, showing an unusual sympathetic expression before returning to his usual scowl. "I don't need your pity. I can do it myself!"

"Umm… I won't bite," assured Clay nervously as his hands started to tremble. "Umm… you can tell me… yeah…"

Kaiser sighed, expression relaxing a bit. "I guess… I'm not that trusting though so perhaps, I could start now…" He then let out an expression of hate. "I need a break… I can't lose myself to insanity and anger. I'm better than this…"

Clay smiled weakly at the Hydreigon. "Umm… let it all out, man…"

Kaiser silently growled. "I need to go…" Kaiser flew out of the cabin with an indescribable expression.

Clay's hands fidgeted nervously. "..."

 **000**

 **Kaiser: *hits the side of the confessional* I fucking hate this! I need to keep it together… I don't want to look like a weirdo… *frowns, looking down* I… don't know anymore…**

 **000**

 **Clay: Kaiser is a confusing guy… is he bipolar?**

 **000**

Brianna couldn't sleep. She plagued with nightmares for the past few days. She huffed as she covered her lower body with a mint green blanket.

"Stupid team… stupid Trevor… stupid Sari… stupid Walter." Brianna muttered to herself, burying her head under a pillow. "Why don't they listen to me..?"

She then lifted the pillow off of her face, eyes boring into the bedroom window. She noticed Lance peering through the window with narrowed eyes.

"What is he doing?" Brianna asked herself with a frown.

The Decidueye shook its head before vanishing from view.

* * *

Lance continued to fly around the area. He was attempting to search for the immunity idol. He checked everywhere but the idol was still nowhere to be found.

He sighed as he perched on a tree branch. "No immunity idol in sight…" He then heard some rustling coming from the bushes nearby.

His eyes narrowed in suspicion as Atticus emerged from the bushes. "What the? Hmm… this is suspicious… the heroic Lance might be required for this…"

Atticus muttered something to himself as he noticed Lance perched on the tree. He decided not to speak, knowing that the bird was watching him.

Atticus quickly entered the villa shortly afterwards.

Lance grumbled to himself as he failed to gain intel. Taking a deep breath, he flew off the branch.

 **000**

 **Lance: I suspect a lot of people in this competition… there might be a collaboration of villains in the future so I must be wary and search for clues…**

 **000**

 **Atticus: *continues to jot down notes* Hmm… Lance has a lot of weaknesses so I shouldn't worry about him… though, there are a lot of visible threats… I should immediately deal with them…**

 **000**

Hazuki sighed as she held a cup of chamomile tea. Sitting next to her was Drake. Surprisingly, the two got along rather well. The Gabite was gingerly holding a small cup of coffee.

"So… Hazuki, how is life outside the game?" Drake casually asked the Delphox, taking a sip from his cup. "I see that you're quite social and amicable, though you can sometimes be reckless and immature."

Hazuki pouted at the Drake. "I was just teasing. I'm not a bad girl after all." She then sighed as she took a sip. "I won't be a bother, I promise!"

"Well… I hope so," muttered Drake with a deadpanned expression. He then turned back to the Delphox. "Do you have any close friends outside the game?"

Hazuki nodded.

"Do you have a special someone?"

 **CRASH**

Hazuki's cup of tea shattered as it fell to the floor. Her left eye twitched. "Sorry? I have a lot of friends… though that question is quite…" Hazuki shook her head. "I'm sorry but this conversation is over."

Drake furrowed a brow as the Delphox stood up, leaving the table.

 **000**

 **Hazuki: *takes a deep breath* Okay… I'm still hung about** _ **that**_ **but… I'm trying to cope! I need to keep myself together!**

 **000**

 **Drake: *squints* I'm not going to intrude in her private life. If she decided to have a sudden burst of emotions, I won't mind.**

 **000**

"Contestants, please head to beach for another challenge," piped up Nihilego's voice through the intercom.

* * *

The contestants all stood in front of the two hosts. Behind the hosts were two giant ships that could fit one team on it.

"Okay, are you all ready for the second challenge?" Nihilego queried rhetorically, clasping her tentacles cheerily.

"No, tentacle pussy." Rae said simply. "We're not yet ready."

Nihilego blushed in embarrassment. "That was rhetorical…" She shook her head. "Okay, this challenge would be simple yet complicated rescue mission."

"Will we rescue your missing virginity?" Rae drawled huskily. "Oh that's right, no one would want to take yours away in the first place."

Nihilego internally screamed in her head but decided to continue with her explanation. "Well, you'll rescue an intern, one for each team."

Crimson gulped, raising her hand. "Even D-Donald."

"Even Donald," giggled Nihilego cheerily. "Sooo… they're currently at another island, waiting to be saved so all you have to do is save them. The first team to bring back their intern here on the beach wins the challenge."

"Which intern do we have to save?" inquired Favian.

"Well… since the Noctowls won last time, they get to save Vivian the Roserade while the Octilleries get Donald the Gumshoos," explained Nihilego with a shy smile.

"Fuck! I don't want to save the pervert." Breon enthused with a cold scowl.

Sophia nodded hesitantly, not wanting to agree with a male. "I don't want to save any filthy males… especially a pervert!" She then raised her head proudly. "I'm a proud female after all so mingling with the beggars would ruin my status."

"Ohohoho, is that true?" Alex asked sarcastically. "I would drop dead just from smelling you, you stinky asshole."

"Settle down." Nihilego requested sternly. "We still have to finish explaining…" She then smiled as everyone stopped talking. "Okay… the island where the victim's are located is the desolate and dangerous island of Broken Dreams."

Azure raised her left hands. "Umm… what's that? I didn't see any other islands during the boat ride here."

"Well… it's quite well hidden." Nihilego explained with a lighthearted giggle.

"Actually, the island is on this island." Guzzlord revealed, nibbling on a tin can. "But… you'll need the boats to get there…"

Nihilego nodded in agreement. "Well… good luck finding the island!"

 **000**

 **Sophia: For this challenge, I would proudly lead this team of suckers!**

 **000**

 **Azure: *jots down some notes* Hmm… perhaps, I should've drawn a map of the island when I had the chance…**

 **000**

The Octilleries boarded their boot then started to look around for important supplies. Clay exited the control room, carrying a duffel bag.

He then walked to the bow of the boat where everyone was waiting.

"Okay, who would want to steer the boat?" Ruby asked her teammates sternly. "We need to be fast yet careful. I don't want to lose to those Noctowls again."

"Well, I know how to steer a boat," boasted Sophia. "I'm a proud female after all! I learned how to steer when I was still six!"

"Oh… I learned when I was still four," drawled Quentin, deadpanned. The Sylveon then grinned. "I can steer the boat for the team!"

Ruby nodded as the Sylveon padded off to the control room. "Okay… let's start!"

The boat started to drift away from shore.

Izaya eyed the opposing boat, that was nearing them, warily. He turned to Ruby. "Well… shouldn't we delay the other boat… so that they would arrive at the island later than us. Nihilego didn't say it wasn't allowed."

Serall snickered darkly. "I'm so glad that we can hurt the other team freely. My fists are itching for a brawl."

"But we don't want to hurt them too much," whimpered Clay, dropping the duffel bag with a look of disapproval. "We only have to delay them after all…"

"What do you suggest?" Icy queried, tilting her head in confusion, eyes darting between Clay and Luther, who was wobbling around the ship shakily. She then tapped her chin. "Well… we can freeze their boat… no one could get hurt, r-right?"

"Well… they might catch a c-cold," whimpered Clay, shivering. "Let's just use… psychic powers to delay them."

"Good idea," remarked Ruby. She turned to Juvia and Icy. "You two will be doing that job!"

"I promise to do my best," chirped Juvia with a kind smile. "I would help my team!"

Icy nodded nervously. "Y-yeah… this is w-what they get for hurting Luther…" Her gaze hardened. "I'm not going to let them make it out without mental damage!"

"Well… stop dilly-dallying and hop to it," huffed Ruby sternly.

Icy and Juvia nodded, walking away.

* * *

"Okay… so Maya uses her telekinesis to delay the opponent's boat?" Zane queried the Slowking, rubbing the back of his head. "Well… what if the other team have a back-up plan?"

"Well… we would have to use… hitting power… kicking… attacks," explained Favian, pausing between words. "So… they can't retaliate if they're all fainted…"

"Good plan," remarked Jack with a nonchalant expression. "So… Lance and Sora can do an air strike… and I could use Shadow Ball on them while remaining invisible…"

"Thank you henchmen for helping me plan." Brianna said cooly. "This team would literally fall apart without me!"

"Oh my! Leader Brianna is so smart!" cooed Azure, flailing her arms in excitement. "I'm such a fan, aren't I?!"

"Well… let's commence with the plan." Favian sighed, looking down at the floor. "Okay… Maya, Lance, Sora and Jack… remember the plan…"

The aforementioned four nodded, floating away from the Slowking to commence the plan.

 **000**

 **Favian: I respect the fact that Brianna wants to be in charge but she should stop interrupting… it would just cause more problems.**

 **000**

 **Brianna: Okay… following me is not a right but a privilege so don't go complaining about your rights!**

 **000**

Icy sighed as she started to use her psychic powers to stop the Noctowls' boat from moving any further. Though, the boat was too big for her to delay alone.

Juvia grinned as she stood next to the Froslass. "Okie dokie! It's time for me to help the team!" Her eyes glowed purple as she started to channel her psychic powers on the opposing boat.

Maya gulped as she noticed the two. "My special attack stat is lower than theirs! I'm thoroughly screwed… g-good game everyone!"

Jack gave the Gardevoir a 'seriously?!' look. "Maya, just do it! I'll distract them!" Jack then charged up a Shadow Ball, aiming it at the Shuppet.

Lance grinned as he shot at Dark Pulse at the side of the Octilleries' boat. "Take that, villains! Chalk one up for the heroic lance!"

"Lance, stop talking and start attacking Juvia and Icy… or something." Sora intoned, continuing to use Aerial Ace on the boat.

Juvia giggled as she started using Shadow Ball on the Decidueye. "I'm sorry for this!"

Serall then stood next to Juvia, clenching his fists with a smirk. "Time for me to strike!" He clawed the wannabe hero. "Muahahahahaha!"

Sari grinned from the other boat as she breathed fire at the scaly dragon, winking maniacally. "Sorry, I didn't see you there!"

 **000**

 **Juvia: This is quite easy! Izzy would be proud!**

 **000**

 **Serall: *now covered with burns* That sexy salamander is a bitch! I'm going to defeat her and her fucking team!**

 **000**

Favian was in the control room of his team's boat, steering the ship. Azure and Brianna were both assisting him. Otis was just eyeing the windows of the control room lustfully.

"Okay… what part of the floating land… archipelago… island should we check first?" Favian asked his teammates. "We don't want to lose against those originals."

"Well… we could for some waterway… or rivers that would lead us to somewhere," suggested Azure with an intellectual expression. She then grinned. "Ooh! Let's do that!"

"That's a good plan, follower." Brianna remarked with a cocky grin. "Let's search for riv- Otis, stop that!"

The Stoutland was licking the windows, tail wagging vigorously. "My sand… has evolved… to glass! I would still love you, no matter what form you take!"

Favian blinked. "What sorcery is this? Is this specimen… licking the glass barrier?!" He rubbed his back sheepishly. "This act of lust isn't enough to stop us!"

Azure and Brianna nodded nervously.

"Let's begin, shall we?" Favian enthused, ignoring the sounds of licking.

 **000**

 **Favian: Otis concerns me… does he need medical help for his mental state?**

 **000**

 **Otis: *grins creepily* Sand is ethereal. Sand is omnipotent.**

 **000**

 **Azure: I am my leader's follower so I must follow well!**

 **000**

Sophia yawned as she continued to pace around the ship, mind filled with thoughts about her feminazi campaign.

She huffed as she suddenly bumped into Izaya. A scowl formed on her face at the sight of the bat. "Males these days, they are so clumsy and reckless!"

"You're the one who was spacing out." Izaya pointed out nonchalantly, visibly unaffected by the Bastiodon's remark. He then frowned. "Now… leave me be… I'm still pondering on a certain matter."

Sophia furrowed a brow. "Is it porn? Males are known to be very horny!" She then frowned. "Isn't my body enough to satisfy your tastes?! I mean… I'm gorgeous!"

Izaya blinked nonchalantly. "Really? All I'm seeing is a Bastiodon with a really bad attitude…"

Sophia's left eye began to twitch. "I am not just a Bastiodon! I'm a hot, sexy, gorgeous Bastiodon!" She stomped her hind legs repeatedly. "I'm also the leader of this team!"

Ruby furrowed a brow as she approached the duo. "Izaya… I need you to help in stopping Lance, Sora and Jack from attacking Icy and-"

"Juvia…" Izaya muttered, nodding. "I'll be there… I'm always there… to save… her." His eyes widened as Vivian came to mind. He shook his head. He only love Juvia… right?

Izaya flew away with a distressed expression.

Ruby then turned to Sophia. "How about you? You can't just stand idly… you need to help the team… I'll be helping Quentin steer the ship… we have an island within an island to find!"

"I am helping! I'm beautifying the ship!" Sophia explained haughtily. "I'm lots of help! I'm an asset to this sucky group!"

Ruby's stare hardened. "Well… I'll be warning you, your safety is not guaranteed."

 **000**

 **Ruby: I'm not afraid to do foul play! So… Sophia should toughen up and help the team! She's also fucking annoying!**

 **000**

 **Sophia: I'm fucking sexy and hot! I'm also a female! Working hard is not on my job description, missy!**

 **000**

Icy narrowed her eyes, focusing on a buoy on the path of the Noctowls' ship. Sure, Icy was not the violent type but this was for the team. She took a deep breath as she attempted to use her psychic powers to make the opposing boat hit the buoy.

Sari giggled maniacally as she aimed a Shadow Ball at the Froslass. "Good night, fucker!'

Icy quickly dodged the Shadow Ball. "W-what are you trying to do? Kill me!"

"YUP!" yelled Sari, using Flamethrower. "No one can stop me!"

Raven grinned as he stood next to the salamander with a wild stare. "I'm going to help you, Arceus-fucking bitch."

Sari forced a grin as she continued aiming Flamethrower at the Froslass, who continued to dodge.

Juvia took a deep breath as she began charging up a Shadow Ball from outside of the salamander's line of vision. Exhaling, she aimed it at Sari, shooting it.

Sari jumped out of the way, gritting her teeth. "Ghost bitch! I'm going to kill you for that!"

Lance swooped onto the Octilleries' boat, aiming a Dark Pulse at Juvia. "Sorry missy! This world needs the heroic Lance!"

Sora grinned as she flew higher. "Brave Bird!" She plummeted towards the side of the boat, hitting it was a hard thud.

Juvia peered over the edge, checking if the Staraptor was still fine after her collision with the boat. "Are you still okay?"

"Juvia, be careful," warned Icy, continuing to dodge Lance and Sari's attacks. "It might be a trick… all we need to do is delay them… this isn't the true challenge yet."

Juvia nodded, floating away from the side of the boat. She then aimed a Shadow Ball at the salamander. "Stop attacking my friends!" With a huff, she fired the Shadow Ball.

Sari's eyed widened as the Shadow Ball collided with her face, causing her to fall to the floor with thud.

 **CRASH**

The Noctowls' boat hit the buoy, smashing the front end of the boat. Sari stood up, clenching a fist. "Why, you motherfuckers! I'll kill you all!"

"Sari… just… attack them." Jack drawled, eyes darting around wildly. "I have a intricate plan…"

"Gladly." Sari answered, firing a Shadow Ball at Icy.

Icy groaned as she fell to the floor upon impact. She was losing energy from using her psychic powers and dodging. She struggled to stay afloat but continued to fall to the floor. Luther, who was wobbling around woozily, stumbled upon the Froslass.

"Y-yo-you okay, Icy?" Luther asked the Froslass who was struggling to stay afloat.

"I'm f-fine," lied Icy. She didn't want to look weak in front of her boyfriend. She grunted as she fell to the floor again. "Perfectly f-fine."

Juvia shook her head as she watched from the distance, charging up another Shadow Ball to attack the opponent's boat.

 **000**

 **Juvia: Lying is bad, isn't it? Icy should be more truthful next time… before she ends up hurting someone.**

 **000**

 **Icy: Ugh… I should really grow some balls! I'm in an alliance so I need to cooperate to make the merge!**

 **000**

Brianna gritted her teeth as she eyed the large dent on the front of the boat.

"How did a small buoy did that?!" Brianna screeched in disbelief. She shook her head. "It's just a small dent… let's move on!"

"Well… let's just continue, Leader Brianna," whimpered Azure, clutching to her notebook. "The other team might resume attacking us… Sari was seriously banged-up."

Brianna sighed as she walked with Azure towards the control room. "Where's Sari anyway? I haven't seen her on the way."

"She's in the control room," answered Azure sheepishly. "Otis, Favian and Raven are also in the control room too."

Brianna nodded hesitantly.

Azure and Brianna both entered the control room. Favian was steering the ship. Sari was lying on the floor with Raven watching her and Otis was continuing to lick the windows.

"Okay… Favian, how are we?" Brianna asked the Slowking.

"Well… the ship suddenly stopped… so I repaired the problem using my psychic powers." Favian answered. "We can continue… though, Otis and Raven are quite noisy."

Brianna walked towards the satanist, who was chanting over the weak Salazzle. "Hey, what are you doing here? You don't even know how to steer!"

"I'm praying over my lord's feast! Lord Giratina likes to feast on dead psychos," explained Raven, eyes shut. "And… he has never eaten in a long time!"

"Some god, my sand can provide food to the entire Pokemon race so Giratina is quite pathetic," scoffed Otis, turning away from the window. "Sand would fall down your throat simply… but be careful not to choke… sand is ethereal and knows all. Sand is the deity that holds this world together and it is the strings of life!" Otis chuckled maniacally. "Bow down, doggie!"

Sari groaned as she sat up, holding her head. She glared at her surroundings. "Are we even doing the fucking challenge or are we just sitting ducks?"

"Well… we're just going to get boat started again." Azure explained, jotting down some notes. "You were quite… banged up earlier…"

"Well… at least I hit that icy kimono bitch," muttered Sari, rolling her eyes. She stood up, brushing the dust off of her body. "Well… let's fucking go, bitches!"

She swiftly kicked Azure who cringed. "My body is fucking ready!"

 **000**

 **Azure: Sari is too violent… and a psychotic lizard. She's also a physical threat so I should convince the others to vote her off whether I feel like it…**

 **000**

 **Sari: *clenches a fist* I can't believe I let my guard down! That fucking Shuppet and Froslass are both dead to me…**

 ***snickers* Though, that Kommo-o was a pussy…**

 **000**

 **Otis: Sand would bury the heretics and I'll stand over their sandified corpses! I'm Otis, the Sand Shaman Overlord!**

 **000**

Serall clenches a fist as he examined the opposing boat. He was quite annoyed that Sari caught him off guard.

He smacked the railings hardly. It was embarrassing. He was athlete after all and being caught off guard would make him a disgrace.

He then noticed Icy, Juvia and Luther nearby, barely fending off Lance, Sora and Jack. He smirked, if he were to defeat the two attacks, perhaps it might give him some recognition from his teammates.

He staggered towards his teammates with a cocky smirk. Serall quickly clawed Jack, who screams in pain in response.

Jack took a deep breath as both he and the scaly dragon were enveloped with a dark light.

"What the fuck is this?!" growled Serall, continuing to use Dragon Claw on the Lampent. "I can't be beaten by a stupid fucking lamp!"

Jack yawned before floating back to his own ship. "Well… hit me if you can… I'm too far from you… if Sari can beat you, I can obviously can too!"

Serall suddenly collapsed to the floor. "D-destiny Bond?" Serall noticed that the Lampent also collapsed on the other boat.

Icy groaned as she too, collapsed. Juvia shook her head as she fired a Shadow Ball at Lance. Luther tilted his head as he stood over Icy, still woozy from the events last challenge.

"Icy… are you really okay?" Luther questioned the Froslass, voice hardening yet still had a concerned tone. "You should really take it easy… ugh, my head still hurts but I'm quite fine now… Nihilego's medical knowledge was quite subpar but it did the job."

Icy smiled before finally fainting.

Juvia sighed as she floated to the fainted Froslass. "Well… I defeated the attackers now…" The camera panned to the deck of the enemy ship where Sora and Lance were both lying down, fainted.

Trevor poked Lance's body. "Can I eat him?"

The camera panned back to the Octilleries' boat.

Juvia sighed, shaking her head. "I don't see why Icy had to hide her own weaknesses…" She then grinned. "Well… I'm quite happy for them. I learn from my mistakes… being confused is quite exhilarating, if you know everything, what's the fun in that?"

Luther frowned. "Juvia… let's take Icy-"

Before Luther can continue, Izaya flew next to Juvia with a tired expression. "Juvia… sorry that I was late… I was pondering on something…"

"That's fine! I'm just happy to see you." Juvia giggled.

 **000**

 **Luther: I'm… quite confused. Juvia is clueless… yet knowledgeable at the same time… Izaya is quite lucky to have her…**

 **000**

 **Serall: *groans* I'm quite furious! That lamp cheated!**

 ***smirks* Thankfully, he's not the only who does…**

 **000**

 **Juvia: My mind is an open book… though, its contents might be written with invisible ink!**

 **000**

"I think I know where the island is." Quentin said to Ruby as he steered the ship with his ribbons. "We have to follow the river inland though… then we'll find ourselves in a lake… in the middle of the island… in the middle of a lake."

"Woah… how didn't we find that during the last challenge?" Ruby queried the Sylveon, quite confused. She then smirked. "It doesn't matter… we'll win this challenge!"

Kaiser, who was standing near the door, stared at the Sylveon suspiciously. Quentin oozed malice and sadism. The Sylveon felt familiar somehow.

"You okay?" Clay asked as he stood next to the Hydreigon with a concerned expression. "You look troubled… you can t-tell me."

"You again?! I told you that I can't." Kaiser muttered, surprisingly softly. "I… really can't…" His expression mellowed a bit as he took a deep breath. "I'm sorry Clay… I'm in need of power and asking others for help won't boost my self-esteem…"

"Kaiser… learn to trust others," cooed Clay with a weak smile.

Kaiser blinked. "Wait… Clay… you're acting awry too…"

Clay tilted his head in confusion. "W-wha?!"

"It's nothing…" Kaiser muttered, shaking his head.

* * *

Raven grumbled to himself as he paced around the ship. The challenge was quite tedious. They were trying to reach their destination for hours already and the cultist was getting bored.

He perked up as an idea formed on his tiny mind. "Hehehehe… this would be perfect… I can beat Otis and form a following in the process…" Raven closed his eyes to think. "Hmm… but who would be perfect for this cult…"

He continued to pace around until he noticed Otis nearby. The Stoutland was devouring something powdery and dark-coloured. Probably sand.

He then furrowed a brow as the Stoutland blew the sand off of his paw. "Strange." Raven shook his head. This wasn't important anyway.

* * *

Drake sighed as he stood by the door to the control room. He was thinking about Hazuki's outburst earlier. He was not yet knowledgeable of the Delphox's personal life but he was intrigued.

Willow hummed as she wobbled towards the land shark with a grin. "I see that you're down. Do you want me to find love?" She then swooned. "Ah, love is so grand yet rejection is painful."

"I'm not finding love." Drake drawled, crossing his arms. He pointed at Hazuki who was staring at the water. "Ask her that… I'm just minding my own business."

Willow giggled as she hovered to the Delphox.

Drake blinked nonchalantly. "Well… that was easy."

The camera panned to Hazuki who blinked in confusion as Willow approached her.

"Wha? Willow, what are you doing here?" she asked, startled. "And… your grin is quite creepy…"

"Well… I'm here to find love for you!" Willow gushed eerily. She spun around before turning back to the Delphox. "Well-"

"Land ho!" Azure yelled as she exited the control room with a sheepish grin. "Let's go, guys! Let's save Vivian!"

The Azurill gestured at the lone island sitting on the middle of the lake… in the middle of the island. She then cringed as she noticed the Octilleries speeding up, surpassing their boat. "Oh my! The other team is ahead of us now!"

"Well… let's disembark, find Vivian and win this!" enthused Brianna with a smirk as she stood beside Azure.

 **000**

 **Azure: *swoons* Oh my! Brianna stood beside me… ahem, Leader Brianna stood beside me! I'm a lucky gal! Meeting a great leader rarely happens in anyone's lifetime.**

 **000**

 **Hazuki: *blinks* What… was Willow talking about? Well… I don't have any crushes… I had an outburst earlier because of bottled up emotions… that's it...**

 **000**

The Octilleries looked at the island warily. The island looked desolate and abandoned so it's quite strange that it was on the Ultra Beasts' vacation island. The tree were all thick and had dark-coloured leaves. The beach was covered with strange purple sand.

Comf giggled darkly. "Ah… just like home…"

"Well… let's find Donald and leave quickly." Ruby said calmly as a foul odor wafted about the area. She then took a deep breath. "Let's go!"

Clay then lets out a loud groan. "This smell… it's… so bad!" He quickly covered his nose. "Master told me to avoid foul places and this island is one of them."

"Well… we still have to save Donald for the challenge." Ace pointed out.

"I have mixed feeling about this… perhaps, we can lose this challenge and abandon Donald so that the Mightyena can devour him." Crimson suggested, remembering her interactions with the Gumshoos last season. She shuddered. "I still have nightmares from that…"

"Well… we shouldn't be picky," remarked Meowzer, crossing her arms. "Donald is still a person...no matter how many 'deeds' he has committed in the past."

"Well… didn't you do all of those stuff last season?" Comf queried the Meowstic smugly.

Meowzer shook her head. "Let's just go… ahead…"

 **000**

 **Meowzer: *hands on her head* I'm trying to change… I even got Vivian to get me drugs…**

 ***eyes turn red* Well… if Comf really hates me, I'll make her hate me more…**

 **000**

 **Comf: *giggles* To be honest, I liked how Meowzer strangled me… it was quite cool and being on the verge of death was exhilarating. Last season was a drag… being nice didn't work… at least it proved that I can't be nice… at all!**

 **000**

The Noctowls groaned as they all stood on the beach. The Octilleries were now far ahead of them because of the delays they had, thanks to the buoy that hit their boat.

"Well… let's go ahead," drawled Atticus nonchalantly, jotting down some notes. He then smirked. "Well… if we have time, we can explore the place out."

Hazuki giggled. "Go idea. Though, I suggest that we check the high places on this island… perhaps, Vivian would be there."

"And we can talk about your love on the way!" cooed Willow.

"Wha?"

"It's nothing." Drake uttered, crossing his arms somewhat guiltily. "Willow is a fucking shipper so it's natural for her to talk about love."

Willow frowned at the Gabite, muttering incoherently.

"Okay… let's go!" Brianna commanded her group as she covered her nose. "This foul stench isn't enough to stop us!"

"Well… let's get going then, _leader_ ," Walter mumbled loudly.

Azure tilted her head in confusion as she stared at the island. "Um… guys, I think this island isn't safe…"

"Nonsense." Brianna scoffed cockily. "As your leader, I command you all to get going… into the island!"

* * *

The Octilleries travelled through the spooky forest quickly and cautiously.

Luther, who was lagging behind, cringed as he stepped on a spiny twig. "Ouch… I think my foot has splinters now."

Icy floated to the trash bag, concerned. "Luther, are you okay? Your time on the island… has been quite unlucky. You fell into that lava pit and had a long coma… this is quite concerning."

"Well… I guess so," replied Luther, falling to the dirt with a hard thud. "Ugh… why am I so clumsy lately? Is it because of the lack of garbage… or sense of unfamiliarity?" Luther held his head in pain. "And my head is still thro-throbbing from last challenge."

Icy sighed as she gently patted the trash bag's back. "You- I mean, we'll be okay…"

Meanwhile, ahead of the couple was Jester, who was staggering ahead of Metilda, who was eyeing the Shiny Treeko protectively.

Metilda quickly gripped onto the Treeko's shoulder tightly. "Be careful… this forest isn't what it seems to be…"

Jester furrowed a brow, crossing his arms shakily. "W-what do you mean, Metilda? I know that this is a spooky forest but we haven't encountered any d-dangers yet."

Before Metilda could reply, the nearby bushes rustled wildly. Metilda quickly covered Jester with her tight and painful embrace. "Don't worry…"

"If I'm being hugged then at least hug Junior too," whimpered Jester, surprisingly oblivious to the pain.

"Leave me out of it." Junior muttered, walking ahead of the duo.

 **000**

 **Jester: I admit it… I quite have got used to Metilda's hugs… it feels good after you forget about all of the pain from Metilda's blades. I actually like it…**

 **000**

 **Junior: Those two are quite intimate… well, Metilda's overprotective and Jester's timid but I can see the chemistry between them. Though, they aren't seeking for love.**

 **000**

 **Luther: I feel like a nervous wreck… I can't do anything right… r-right?**

 **000**

Vivian groaned as she struggled to break free from her restraints. Donald was getting on her nerves as the Gumshoos continued to talk about his delusions.

"You're a different kind of evil, demon!" Vivian remarked, paling as bit. "Why were you even chosen for this internship?!"

Donald grinned darkly. "Gimme your virginity, hotstuff. This is for the good of Alola for I would make Alola great again!"

"This is controversial!" spat Vivian, eyes darting around the area wildly. "Geez… pure chaos can't easily be bound by thick pieces of rope!"

Donald wobbled to the Roserade, ropes still intact. "I can give you a good time… for the price of your virginity…"

"This conversation alone isn't appropriate for the young viewers!" Vivian growled at the mongoose, clenching a fist. She then broke free from the restraints. "I'm the one going to give you a good time… for me!"

* * *

The Octilleries then found themselves at the foot of a tall mountain.

"Soooo… how are we supposed to scale that large mountain?" Ace queried his teammates, sweating a bit.

"Well… not all of us would have to climb." Quentin pointed out with a smirk. He then frowned. "But how are we sure that the interns are up there?"

"It's what's expected from the hosts." Breon explained dryly. "They want to make it harder for us so they placed the interns on top a very tall mountain."

"Well… only the physically active members would climb!" enthused Juvia, floating around cheerily. "Or… we could fly or float our way to the top~"

Ace blinked. "Well… Juvia has the right idea… Izaya, Juvia, Clay, Randall, Junior, Alex and Ashley can all scale the mountain."

Ashley nodded. "I can do this!"

"I'm okay with that… but instead of Alex, I can climb instead." Crimson suggested, crossing her arms. "I'm not so sure that he can climb an anthill."

"Crimson, I'm a survivalist! I climb mountains taller than this," scoffed Alex, rolling his eyes.

"Then climb it!"

Alex growled silently as he began scaling the mountain. Juvia, Ashley and Izaya easily made it to the top via floating and flying. Clay slowly climb the mountain carefully. Randall and Junion, on the other hand, were quick as they scaled the mountain.

"Oh my! I should make a climbing yaoi next!" mused Poppy cheerily. "Climb int-"

"Stop… I know that you'll add something… dirty." Breon drawled nonchalantly. He then stared ahead. "Let's just… wait for them to climb… it might be ample time for me to think…"

Breon turned around to notice that Kaiser was strangely examining Quentin's movements… which was quite unlike the Hydreigon as he was somewhat violent.

Breon warily approached the Hydreigon with a bored expression. "Sooo… is stalking a normal attribute for Hydreigon?"

Kaiser growled at the Vikavolt. "Just fucking leave me while I'm thinking… are you thinking I'm a puny shallow dragon! Well… I'M NOT!"

"It's not that…" He silently gestured to Quentin. "What is your intention in examining Quentin's movement..?"

"Well… I'm getting this vib-" He paused, face stiffening. "Wait… why are you and that Clay guy are always approaching me…"

"This is the first time I approached you." Breon pointed out dryly.

 **000**

 **Breon: I still miss Septh… but Kaiser reminds me of myself… he has some hidden depths… and I'm quite surprised that he kept his cool while talking with me.**

 **000**

The Noctowls were surprised to find the Octilleries at the foot of the mountain. As they noticed some of their opponents scaling the mountain, they quickly formed a circle.

"So… what should we do? The other team is ahead of us." Marina queried her teammates. "We can't lose this… it would ruin my reputation as the best member on this team."

"Well… Rae, Sora, Lance and Luke can fly to the top and get Vivian." Azure pointed out with a tired expression. "Then let's go back to the boat, steer it back to the beach, win this challenge and rest."

"Willow can replace me." Luke said with a lazy grin. "My wings are quite… weak."

"But… I need time to think." Willow pouted. "My ships need to be very detailed… and very spicy! This is for you, Hazuki!"

"Again, I don't know what you're talking about." huffed Hazuki, somewhat confused. She then giggled. "Well… Sora, Lance and Rae are enough for this job. Rae alone, could probably carry Vivian."

"No." Rae stated simply. "I'm quite tired… so Lance and Sora can do it…"

Lance nodded, saluting. "Yes, the heroic Lance would take one for his heroic team! I would not disappoint!"

"Well… I won last challenge for the team… so there's no risk in me winning for team again." Sora remarked sheepishly. She then grinned competitively. "Let's do this!"

Luke grinned as he watched the two birds take flight. "This is such a chill moment, bruhs…"

Marina sighed in relief as the two birds reached the top. "Perhaps, we still have a chance in this… for a minute there, I thought we would've lost."

"My sand could've help!" Otis pointed out sternly.

 **000**

 **Brianna: Well… I misjudged my team… we can win this!**

 **Sari (outside): Can I fucking kill you?!**

 **Brianna: *sighs* Maybe not…**

 **000**

 **Hazuki: Willow is quite… creepy. I don't know what she's talking about… why is she suddenly obsessed with my lovelife..?**

 **000**

 **Drake: *deadpan* I might've flubbed after confiding to Willow… but perhaps, this might be right. It might get both of them eliminated from the competition. As a true neutral guy, I would stay on the sidelines.**

 **000**

Izaya, Ashley, Juvia, Lance and Sora were now on top of the mountain, which was surprisingly flat. Izaya blinked as he stared at Vivian, who was hitting Donald repeatedly.

"That's… what… you… get… for being a pervert!" snarled Vivian, pausing between words to exhale. "This villain is not yours!"

Donald groaned as he clenched a fist. "Blasted… females…" His eyes then closed as he succumbed to unconsciousness.

"Woah… that was quite… impressive." Izaya commented, impressed with the Roserade's actions. He flew towards the fainted Donald. "Ashley… can you carry Donald? Alex and Clay might still be climbing the mountain."

Randall and Junior huffed as they finally reached the top of the mountain. Lance quickly lifted Vivian off the ground with a huff.

Sora quickly used Aerial Ace on Ashley, causing the Whimsicott to fall to the ground due to type-effectiveness. "Sorry for this… this is for the challenge!"

Izaya quickly retaliated with Air Slash, successfully hitting Lance. Lance groaned as he struggled to take flight but his wing was now covered with cuts from Izaya's attack. "A true hero… never surrenders…"

Lance aimed a Dark Pulse at the bat but he was quickly stopped as Randall crushed him with his body.

Izaya caught Vivian before she could fall. Izaya gently placed the Roserade on the ground. Afterwards, he tipped his fedora as he floated towards Juvia.

"Izaya, let's go… Junior can carry Donald so we can finally go down." Juvia said to the Crobat hastily with a small grin.

Junior nodded as he lifted Donald. "Let's make this quick… Donald might wake up soon… and that would not be pretty sight."

* * *

"This is taking too longs! How expected of those males… and Juvia." Sophia blustered, pacing around the area impatiently. "I'm going to tell them off!"

"It's not like you can climb a cliff." Quentin bluntly pointed out, rolling his eyes. "Soo you don't have the right to judge."

Sophia rolled her eyes. "Fuck off, male!"

Quentin ignored Sophia as he walked towards the bushes, squinting his eyes in examination. He then turned to his teammates. "We should get going now… this place isn't exactly safe."

The bushes began to shake violently… along with the ground. The mountain began to decrease height, to the campers' confusion until the mountain disappeared. Izaya and Junior blinked as they carried the unconscious Donald.

Marina quickly lifted Vivian off the ground while Sora carried Lance.

"To the boat, guys!" Brianna commanded her team as she ran towards the beach. "We don't have any time to waste!"

The Noctowls followed Brianna to the beach, the Octilleries trailed behind them.

 **000**

 **Sophia: This island must be a fucking male! It's quite obvious!**

 **000**

The Noctowls were the first to board their boat while the Octilleries boarded theirs shortly afterwards. However, the Octilleries hastily got the lead due to the Noctowl's technical problems.

The two teams were quite surprised as the island began to sink.

"Oh my… we could've died!" Flint exclaimed, covering his body.

"Ignore that… for now, we need to find out a way to win this." Azure said calmly. "The Octilleries are ahead of us so we need to think of a way to delay them…"

"Guys… can't anyone use a strong attack with a high area coverage?" Brianna questioned her team impatiently.

"I can burn their boat!" Sari suggested darkly. "And if I'm lucky… they'll all be dead so we'll all have less competition."

"Great idea!" agreed Brianna.

"We can't kill." PJ protested with a frown. "We're all Pokemon so let's just get along!"

"Sari, just use Flamethrower on the other boat." Brianna ordered the Salazzle sternly.

Sari grinned as she nodded. "I won't disappoint!"

* * *

Serall's eyes widened as his head was engulfed with Flamethrowers. He clenched a fist as he realized that it was Sari who attacked him.

"Oops again… I missed the boat." Sari lied with a giggled before continuing to use Flamethrower at the scaly dragon.

Poppy used Water Pulse on the salamander. She giggled triumphantly. "Take that, sexy salamander girl!"

Sari growled as she clenched her fists, she turned towards the door to the control room. "Brianna, hit their boat!"

"With what?" questioned Brianna's voice off-screen.

"The boat!" yelled Sari with a psychotic expression.

The Noctowl's boat quickly collided with the opposing boat, chipping off parts of the ship.

"NO! OUR SHIP!" cried Poppy dramatically as the boat began to sink. "IS THIS… THE END?!"

"It couldn't get any worse, right?" Junior tried to lighten up the mood… but…

Donald's eyes opened. He looked around lustfully. "Ooh… is this heaven or what?"

"FUCKKKKK!"

The Noctowl's boat wasn't faring any better. The side of the boat was ready to collapse.

On the bright side, the beach was now in sight…

"MALES! THE PEOPLE WHO BUILT THESE BOATS ARE MALES! IF A FEMALE BUILT THIS, THE BOATS WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN DESTROYED EASILY!" Sophia snarled, pacing around the boat franticly.

"Stop walking around, you're just rocking the boat!" Alex yelled to the Bastiodon.

The feminazi didn't listen as she continued to panic.

 **CRASH**

The Noctowls' boat reached the shore first while the Octilleries reached it shortly afterwards.

Nihilego paled as she noticed that the two boats were nearly destroyed. "Woah… this is a lot of damage than what I expected…" She hastily turned to Guzzlord with a frown. "I told you that a hentai challenge would be better!"

"Shaddup." Guzzlord mumbled, rolling his eyes.

Donald grinned as he approached the jellyfish. "Are you here to proclaim my presidency… I did make Alola great again!"

"You're out." Nihilego declared dryly. "You're annoying… and every second of screentime you have lowers other contestants' edits."

Donald frowned. "W-wha?! You can't do this! I'm the president of Alola… and soon, the world! I'll sue you for unfair judgement… I'll charge you with rape!"

Donald was silenced as Nihilego shot him with her toxins. "That'll immobilize him for now…" She then turned to the Noctowls. "Noctowls, you win again so no elimination… while the Octilleries would have to vote off-" She then groaned. "Why am I even trying to add drama? The elimination would be as obvious as Donald's delusions."

 **000**

 **Crimson: Yup… Sophia is definitely going tonight…**

 **000**

 **Evelyn: Sophia is a disgrace to females… enough said…**

 **000**

Sora was out training again in the middle of the woods. She was quite happy then won again. She cringed as she heard someone sigh.

She hastily turned to a twisted tree and noticed Luke, perched on a branch with a relaxed expression. "You! What are you doing here… again?! This is the second time you've done this… in one day!"

Luke yawned. "Bruh… chill. I'm just chilling out, dude… so continue training… you're stressing out too much."

Sora sat down, crossing her wings. "I'm just training! There are a lot of competition so I need to make sure that I'm on the upper half of the spectrum or else I'll be booted."

As the Staraptor looked up, the Taillow was nowhere to be found. She blinked in confusion. "This is getting weird…"

* * *

Sophia grumbled as she sat on her bed in the female losers' cabin. The others in the room were Ruby and Meowzer. The Meowstic was looking jittery as she held her head while the Skuntank closed her eyes in thought.

"They surely would want me to stay." Sophia muttered to herself, rolling her eyes. "I mean, I'm drop-dead gorgeous! My haters are not even Pokemon, they're males!"

Ruby then broke the silence. "Hey… Bastiodon, if you really want to survive this elimination, prove to me that you're actually a capable player."

"I'm already capable… I'm basically classified as godplayer! Vote me off if you want but this team would lose its strongest members." Sophia boasted cockily, rolling her eyes.

"Well… you're admitting that you're a threat… so we should really vote you off." Meowzer intoned with a creepy grin. Her expression turned light-hearted suddenly… somewhat relaxed. "Well… that made voting easier for me. Thanks, Sophia!"

Sophia blinks in disbelief. "What the fuck?!

 **000**

 **Sophia: The whole fucking island is conspiring against me! They want me gone early to protect those other contestants who mean less than me! Stupid plot armor!**

 **000**

Serall punched a tree near the Winners' Lodge out of anger. He was not used to losing… and losing twice in a row made his blood boil.

"This fucking sucks!" grumbled Serall as he split the tree in half. "With our lame performance… I might-"

"You busy, Serall?" came a calm and endearing voice.

Serall turned around to find Quentin with a calm expression. "What are you doing here?!"

"Well… I'm just taking a walk." Quentin explained as he grabbed a berry from a tree with his ribbons. Taking a small bite, he grinned at the scaly dragon. "I see that you have a certain dislike for Sari… is that right?"

Serall nodded vigorously, clenching his fists. "During the challenge, she attacked me twice… and caught me by surprise! She is making me look like a disgrace, I'm a fucking athlete for goodness sake!"

"Well then… why don't you… settle the score with her?" Quentin suggested, gobbling up the berry whole. "Her team won twice… I can't see if we'll win the next challenges unless… you… do something about it…"

Serall grinned as he punched his right palm. "I already know what to do…"

 **000**

 **Quentin: *yawns* Well… I don't want to put myself at risk early in this game… *smirks* so why not let others do the job for me? If Serall succeeds, we win… if he fails, I would just sit and watch who leaves…**

 **000**

The Octilleries calmly sat around the bonfire, awaiting the results of tonight's elimination. Nihilego arrived, carrying a tray of poffins. Guzzlord followed the jellyfish, gripping onto the unconscious Gumshoos with his tongue.

"Octilleries… will this be the start of the cliched losing streak or is this just a wakeup call… well, let's just wait a see." Nihilego said eerily, eyeing the twenty-three campers. "I have 23 campers sitting in front of me but I only have 22 poffins to give… who'll leave?"

 **000**

 **Sophia: Junior… he's a male! Enough said!**

 **000**

 **Ace: Duh, it's pretty obvious…**

 **000**

 **Quentin: Though, I'm tempted to vote off Comf for the events during day one… I'll vote for Junior… it doesn't even matter. Sophia's going home no matter what…**

 **000**

"Everyone but Sophia gets a poffin." Nihilego announced with a bored expression as she hurled poffins at the campers barring Sophia. "Well… that was plain obvious… the feminazi is going home."

Sophia stood up with an expression of disbelief. "You males, are fucking dead to me!"

"Surprise surprise, everyone but two voted for you soooo you're leaving… so bye bye," scoffed Nihilego as the Bastiodon stormed off from the campfire ceremony.

 **000**

 **Sophia: I won't say anything… BUT FUCK ALL OF THE MALES AND FEMALES ON THIS ISLAND! I JUST WANT TO LEAVE AND WASH MY BRAIN WITH BLEACH TO FORGET ALL OF THE FUCKING EVENTS ON THIS ISLAND! GOOD BYE, I WON'T MISS THIS SHITTY SHOW!**

 **000**

Sophia grumbled as she walked towards the end of the docks, where Donald was lying, unconscious.

"Any last words, you two?" Nihilego asked the losers rhetorically.

"F-FUUUUUUU!" screeched Sophia as she and the Gumshoos were kicked off the island by a giant boot.

Nihilego giggled as she hid the button. "Good 'ole boot… you never fail me!"

 **000**

Juvia wandered aimlessly around the beach. She was quite tired after the challenge so she decided to clear her mind with a walk. She stopped as she noticed Izaya, sitting on the docks.

She curiously approached her boyfriend with a confused expression. "Izzy, is something wrong? You're acting weird lately, is something wrong?"

Izaya sighed silently. "It's just… emotions… that I feel." He shook his head. "I'm just here clearing my mind… nothing more, nothing less."

Juvia's eyes bored into the Crobat's. "Izzy… I know this look… it's quite familiar…"

"What… what do you mean?"

"It's the expression you had when you first met me."

* * *

Icy silently entered the girls' cabin. Everyone was surprisingly asleep barring Juvia, who was nowhere to be found.

She hovered to her bed, sitting on it. She sighed as her bed creaked from her weight, despite being light. She was getting emotional recently.

She sighed as she laid her head on the pillow. She threw the blanket off of the bed since it made her uncomfortable.

She looked at the wooden ceiling… it made her drowsy all of a sudden.

Luther… the inventor… the Trubbish… her boyfriend. Icy groaned as she continued to worry. She needed to ease up a bit or else it would bite her in the butt.

Closing her eyes, she fell asleep.

* * *

 **And end scene! This chapter established plotlines so watch out for that~**

 **47th Sophia (The Feminazi)**

 **I don't have to explain this one… I had no idea how to make her develop and even if she did, she's a clear early boot.**

 **Starting from the next episode, the elimination might be a shocker so… watch out for that, kay?**

 **And… if you're a male and you're offended by Sophia… don't. She's just a delusional Bastiodon~**

 **000**

 **Sophia: Review fu- (mouth gets tape up by an unknown force)**

 **Donald: … (Holding a sign that says: "Review!"**


	4. Sweet Revenge

**Well, it's time for another chapter to commence.**

 **Notes: Sophia's elimination last time was a bit anticlimactic but it was to be expected. Sophia was a setup-to-fail character sooo I had no trouble booting her off… Donald's elimination last time was also impromptu.**

 **With that aside, let us finally begin!**

 **000**

 **Mazes always means bad luck.**

 **000**

Zane was walking by the lakeside on the other side of the island. He recently discovered it while he was taking a morning jog. He decided to sit down and gaze at the lake for inspiration.

The other competitors were quite nice but the Zangoose can't find a connection with them. He then remembered his father's words.

"Other Pokemon are just scummy backstabbers who would do anything for money so don't trust any of them… trust yourself and your instinct!"

Zane shook his head. "No father… y-you're wrong… but at the same time… you're right…" Zane buried his head under his hands. "What should I do?" He noticed a Magikarp flopping above the water before sinking back underwater.

Zane's eyes glistened. An epiphany. "Perhaps… I can… stay under the-"

"Hey cutie." A flamboyant voice called out to him from behind.

Turning around, Zane noticed Flint, hands on his hips. The flamboyant homosexual slowly strutted to the Zangoose before stopping, centimeters away from Zane.

"What is a heartthrob like you doing in a messy place like this?" Flint queried the Zangoose seductively. He approached the Zangoose, beginning to examine Zane's figure. "Oh my, you have a nice figure… I'm officially enthralled…" He grinned, taking out a camera. "Well… before you jump to conclusions, I'm not a stalker, rapist or any of those malicious occupations. I'm going to take a photo… one single photo and that's it...so don't move or anything."

Zane's pupils shrank as a flash of light came out of Flint's camera.

Flint giggled as he eyed the photo that was released from his camera. "Ooh… the details are quite enhanced…" His mouth began to water. "Oh my… at this rate, I might be tempted to…" Flint began to mumble lustfully to himself as he walked away.

He turned back, winking at Zangoose. "Well… you do have a gorgeous form but Randall's is so…" He stopped walking, mouth starting to water. "Oh my… I want Randall… but I can't start a scandal… it would ruin my career… hmmm… I'll have to find ways then." He stomped on the ground in excitement. "Oh boy… this would be fun… I can compete in this cheap show and at the same time… sleep with a lot of men!"

"Don't you ever stay in a stable relationship?" Zane queried the Golduck, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "You seem to be very flighty, flirty and… sexual… are all models this sexual?"

Flint giggled, propping his hands onto his hips. "Dearie, I have a reputation to uphold… I have no time for stable relationships!" He waggled his finger at Zane. "And oh my… my schedule is filled up with photoshoots… I'm lucky if I even have spare time. Sleeping with men… have been my favorite hobby… though, I wish to have some relaxation… though… it won't be easy due to the tensions caused by this blasted game."

Zane patted the ground beside him, attempting to offer a seat to the Golduck. "Well… sit next to me… and we can talk. Maybe… it can help ease up your nerves… I know that you're a model but you're currently far from society so use this opportunity to take a break and relax."

Flint grinned as he squatted next to the Zangoose. "Well… I'll gladly accept your offer. My camera is running out of film… sooo I have nothing better to do." He stared at the lake with a wistful grin. "Well… strangely, I feel less perverted now sitting next to you…" A wide grin formed on his face. "Zane… why don't you bond with the others… you look edgy and alone."

"Well… I don't feel like hanging with the others." Zane explained gloomily. "But… at the same time, I do want to hang out with them… I feel that something is holding me back…" He then sighed. "Well… I was… taught some stuff… and my father is against friendship for some reason…"

Flint's expression turned serious, which was unlike the Golduck, who was usually playful and seductive. "Well… don't be restrained by your father's way of thinking… stay with your ideals and prove him wrong…" He then grinned. "Well… I'm not usually this insightful… I'm usually seductive and very lusty… well, I'm glad to have this talk with you." He struck a thoughtful pose. "I have to go back… while Randall is still asleep… he might get mad if I caught him awake." He sprinted away, giving Zane one last look. "Well… let's continue this conversation later… in bed!"

Zane blinked in confusion as Flint sprinted out of sight. "W-what did he mean?" He shook his head. "Well… this might be the first step in proving my father wrong…"

 **000**

 **Zane: Flint is a nice person… when he's not in his seductive mode… he can actually be a good listener… and he has nice communication. I like him as a friend… a lot.**

 **000**

Atticus yawned as he sat up on his light blue bed in the villa. He grabbed his notebook and pencil from his nightstand then began jotting down some notes. His eyes darted between his notebook and the ceiling as he jotted down notes about his competition.

"Hmm… the threats on my team are Azure, Sora and… surprisingly, Otis." Atticus muttered, eyes blinking at a rapid speed. "Azure may act like Brianna's lackey… but she's way more intelligent than the Leafeon and stronger… I need to convince the others to boot her soon… or perhaps… I can befriend some members of this group… joining an alliance is out due to the lack of it… though… nah… forming a new alliance is quite risky since the alliance leader rarely wins… I'll just wait for deux ex machina to take Azure out. Sora is a physical threat… I can freeze her and place her inside a cave… then wait for her elimination due to lack of participation." He yawned. "Nah… too obvious… this was done already in a lot of these shows… I need to be more original with my executions…"

He cleared his throat before continuing thinking. "Otis is a wildcard… a wild wildcard. He's too… spontaneous. His sand fetish might just be an act… or perhaps, he might be possessed. I should boot him quickly… judging from his interactions, he's likely to hurt someone in this game… and that would be quite bad… though, I could let him fatally wound someone and get automatically eliminated as a result… but that would take a lot of work…" He yawned again, rubbing his exhausted eyes. "Okay… those are the threats… let's move on to obvious fodder."

He slowly turned the page of his notebook then began jotting down some more notes. "Brianna, Drake and Willow fall on this category… Trevor and Raven are slightly fodders but they're also wildcards like Otis. Drake didn't do anything for three episodes… though… he might surprise me… but he has bad edits… staying under the radar rarely works. It only delays the inevitable. Brianna… if she continues her dictatorship role, she'll be booted off the island before the merge. Willow is too bubbly… but I sense something sinister within her shipping behavior… I need to look up to that further. Trevor has did nothing to help for the challenges… he's screwed… Raven is just like Otis but he's way more annoying… and he's noisier. Luke is quite laidback… it's quite nice to see contestants that aren't edgy… but he'll learn the bitter truth someday…" His expression darkened. "This world is all black and white."

He yawned as he eyed the wall clock in the room. The time was currently 5:30 AM. Atticus shook his head. He must continue strategizing. He can sleep later.

"Okay… moving on… Darren and Maya are both nice people… but in a cast of villains and antiheroes, nice isn't enough… they'll be out pretty early so I shouldn't target them… to be nice. Sari is self-explanatory. Flint and Zane might be mid-boots… but I need more interactions with them to make sure… the other members are all neutral… so I won't delve deep with them…"

Atticus yawned as he placed his notebook on the nightstand. "That's all for now… it's quite late already…" He laid on his bed, throwing the blanket off of the bed. "Sweet dreams, cruel world."

For Atticus, there was no such thing as sleep. He only laid on his bed, inhaling loudly with his eyes wide open.

* * *

Alex sat on his bed, clenching his fists. He didn't quite sleep well last night and he was getting cranky. The only other people in the room were Randall, who was thrashing about as he slept, and Luther, who was slumped against the bedframe of his bed, thinking to himself.

Alex groaned as he fell to his bed. He needed some sleep… and the challenge might be creeping by the corner so he can't risk it. He decided to pass the time by starting a conversation with someone.

"Hey Luther! Want to have a chat while waiting for the challenge?" He queried the trash bag, hoping for a response. "I'm fucking bored… and lack of sleep isn't helping my case."

Luther stared at the Sceptile, confused. "How are you sure the challenge is coming? It's just 6:00 AM…" He looked down with a nervous expression. "We haven't eaten yet anyway… perhaps… breakfast might get me out of this funk…" He smacked the side of his head. "Gah! I'm getting clumsy… and I might be losing it!"

"Luther… it's only been one week. Don't be negative." Alex pointed out, crossing his arms. "Get used to the island. Wed be here for a really long time." He then sighed. "Though… Crimson still hates me for some reason… after we met together during the time gap between the seasons… It was quite coincidence…"

"This is the first time I heard of that. What happened?" Luther questioned, furrowing a brow as he now laid on his belly. He then grinned smugly. "Did you do… the deed?" He chuckled. "Honestly, you two have a nice chemistry… as Poppy would say, make love already!"

Alex blushed. "No it isn't, she hates me… and I hate her too…" He took a long time to think before continuing. "We tried to have a relationship… emphasis on try… it just didn't work out… I guess I'm just meant to be alone…" He then sighed. "To be honest, I really want to start a relationship with her again…"

Luther furrowed a brow. "Why Crimson? You barely interact with each other during last season."

"Well… remember after the finale… we kinda... " Alex stopped as he began to blush uncontrollably. "Crimson… wow, she was great!" He quickly covered his mouth. "Oh no…"

"Dude… perhaps you need love in your life, go for it," encouraged Luther with a weak grin. He then chuckled as Randall fell off of his bed, groaning as he stood up.

"Just when I was getting to the good part." Randall said, sweating bullets with a grin.

Luther waved at the newly-awakened Incineroar. "Hey Randall. How was your sleep?"

Randall stretched his limbs as he replied, "It was cool…" He blushed. "Why do you ask?"

"You sleeptalk, dude… besides, your movements when you sleep would make Poppy proud." Luther explained, surprisingly feeling better than before. He then grinned. "Was Jaxxon really that good?"

Alex chuckled. "Dude, you don't just go around asking others how their love ones are in bed… that's rude and plain gross." He then grinned. "I'm quite glad that youre feeling chipper again."

 **000**

 **Luther: I'm feeling lucky again! Island, do your worst! *A Combee flies into the confessional* Oh… a Comb- *the Combee bites into Luther's finger* Ouch… OUCH!**

 **000**

Maya stared at the black screen of her 3DS hungrily. Unluckily, her charger got broken after submerging underwater during the first episode. She was seated in the dining room, feet shuffling tirelessly. Otis grinned as he approached the Gardevoir.

"SAND! ALWAYS REMEMBER TO SPRINKLE SAND ON YOUR VEGETABLES!" Otis chimed in, in a creepy tone. "SAND IS OMNIPOTENT! SAND IS ETHEREAL!"

Maya cocked a brow in confusion, gently setting her 3DS on the table. "It seem that you're afflicted with delusions. Sand is just a Route 1 weakling! Water types can just defeat it with one Water Gun." Maya then frowned. "Besides… my game consoles break whether there is sand inside the circuits…"

Otis cackled triumphantly. "That's because sand is powerful! Your metal playthings don't stand a chance!" He chuckled darkly. "May sand crush your body and soul! Sand is omnipotent… sand is ethereal after all!"

"Woah… are you going to use cheat codes to increase the attack stat of your sand?" Maya curiously asked the Stoutland. "You might a secret boss level… my level is still low so I need to start grinding."

"Maya chill… no one is going to fight," came a calm and melodic voice.

Darren waved at the duo, taking a seat. "You two seem to be having a scuffle… don't resort to violence unless it's required." Darren snapped his fingers with a peaceful expression. "I can be your mediator!" He turned to the Stoutland. "Is that alright, pal?"

Otis nodded vigorously. "I agree with you conditions, sand child!" He chuckled, taking out a handful of sand, sprinkling it around the area. With my sand, I should be the winner by default! The Gardevoir would obviously back out! She's no match for my sand! Sand is omnipotent. Sand is ethereal!"

"I played some games that helped sharpen my skills of deduction!" Maya countered defensively, crossing her arms. "I'm not going to be defeated by plain brown powder!" She giggled nervously. "That would ruin my gaming track record!"

"Later! 5 pm sharp!" Darren intoned calmly. "Though, don't get overboard with it… it's merely a debate… so no violence is needed."

Maya jabbed a finger at the Stoutland's nose with a smirk. "I would defeat you, delusional scumbag! I'll fire a Truth Bullet at you and win the debate by using my skills of persuasion!"

 **000**

 **Maya: Otis would be groveling at my feet after I'm done with him! Sand is omnipotent, my ass!**

 **000**

"CONTESTANTS, PLEASE HEAD TO THE CAMPFIRE AREA FOR YOUR NEXT CHALLENGE!" came Nihilego's voice through the intercom. "WE ALSO HAVE A NEW INTERN TO REPLACE DONALD!"

Crimson shuddered as she heard the name 'Donald'. She was currently in the middle of a clearing with her alliance. "I hope that the new intern is not a pervert… and is actually sane." She shuddered again. "I'm still traumatized from the memories."

Icy nodded slowly. "I agree… though, Flint was watching Randall sleep sometimes… it was quite creepy."

"Well… let's just go." Ashley sighed lazily.

* * *

Nihilego giggled as she waved at the contestants, who were grouped into the two teams created episodes ago. Next to her was a Fennekin, who was flashing a condescending expression. Noticeably, Guzzlord was nowhere to be found.

Violet gestured to the Fennekin, furrowing a brow. "Who's the fox magician? Is it the new intern?"

"Did you just assume that he was a magician just because he's a Fennekin?" Poppy questioned the Liepard with a shaky grin. "He might be a stripper… or a florist!"

"You just assumed the Fennekin's gender." Violet pointed out smugly.

Poppy gaped at the Liepard's remark. "I didn't! I know what male Fennekin looks like, Violet!"

The Fennekin finally spoke up. "I know that you two girls are fighting over me… but worry not, I am a male magician!"

"Wha-" started Violet, only to be interrupted by the Fennekin.

"I am a special snowflake! One in a million! The greatest of snowflakes! HAZEL SNOWFLAKE!" The Fennekin interrupted, waving a stick enthusiastically. "I, HAZEL MAGIC SNOWFLAKE, WOULD WIN-"

"Dude, you're just an intern." Jack pointed out bluntly.

Strangely, Hazel continued smiling. "Even better! I'll stay on this island for the whole game and be showered by everyone's compliments!"

"You know that I fired Donald… I could fire you too if you annoy me." Nihilego pointed out dryly. "I had… bad days recently and any foul words or deed… would push me off the edge."

"Where's Guzzlord though?" Azure queried, gripping to her notebook tightly. "You're usually together… did something happen?"

"He's resting," answered Nihilego, blinking slowly. "Well… Hazel, you can go now… I still have to talk with the contestants." To her surprise, the Fennekin was now nowhere to be found.

"Ooooh, did he use magic?" Juvia asked in awe.

"Nah, he just ran away very quickly." Drake answered, gesturing to Hazel, who was running away from the area in the background.

Nihilego sighed, looking quite irritated before regaining her composure. "Well… I would like to inform everyone that the idol is still hidden sooo you can still search the island while performing the challenge!"

"Yay! I still have the chance to impress Leader Brianna!" Azure cheered, raising her arms in enthusiasm. She hastily turned to the Leafeon. "You'll like that much, right?"

"That's… a noble deed." Quentin commented with a nod. The gears in his mind began turning. He had gained another idea. With Serall doing his thing, he'll surely make it far in the game.

"Okay… with that aside, I can finally announce this sweet challenge!" enthused Nihilego, flailing her tentacles sluggishly. "The challenge is quite simple. You'll be collecting pieces of candy."

"That seems simple enough," uttered Izaya, eyes strangely unfocused.

"Well… if you say so." Nihilego said with a mischievous expression. "We're not going to give you an easy challenge of course… the other team can steal candy and… we hid some surprises… and candy is definitely smaller than the rings first challenge so finding them would be more difficult."

"Is that it?" Quentin questioned, looking bored. "You know that I know all of the twists that hosts plan… this is too similar to the ring challenge… so I expect something to differentiate it."

Nihilego groaned, annoyed with the Sylveon questioning her. "I'm not repetitive… so we made a maze… and the first ten members from each team to ring the bell in the center gets immunity… and the first team is safe from elimination. If your team won and you were one of the first ten, you're immune for you team's next voting ceremony. Though… to get to the center, you need to give 20 candies to Shrek."

Juvia blinked in confusion. " Shrek? Isn't he the Kyogre in that movie?"

"He's an Ursaring with a taste for sweets… we paid him to assist us for this challenge." Nihilego explained. "He is an expert in mathematics so he knows whenever you give him twenty candy. Any less would be… suicide. Shrek is not exactly merciful."

"Hehehehehe, he's not immune to my flames though." Sari said morbidly with a crazy grin. "I'll burn him to a crisp."

"Bad idea." Serall countered, clenching his fists in anger. "I'll pound Shrek out of existence."

"Good luck with that," yawned Nihilego, snapping her tentacles.

A wormhole suddenly formed above them and all of the contestants were all pulled into the wormhole.

* * *

The contestants were then coughed out of the wormhole, directly above an iron maze.

They, barring the contestants that can float or fly, groaned as they hit the cold hard ground with a thud. The room where they were, was cold and the walls were made of iron. There were multiple hallways leading to more rooms in the maze.

Trevor sprung up after he fell with a grin. "Hehehe… Shrek would be fun."

Azure groaned as she lifted her face from the ground. "They should've warned us…" She frowned as she grabbed her notebook from the floor. "Ughh… my back is starting to ache…"

"They're sadists." Breon pointed out dryly, landing on the floor safely. "Well… I would start navigating the maze if I were you if you want to get immunity."

"Stop giving the other team advice." Kaiser growled, landing on the ground next to the Vikavolt.

Clay approached the Hydreigon with a concerned expression. "Kaiser… try to keep your cool, dude."

Kaiser grumbled to himself, "Clay… they're the opponent. I can't just let blabberbug help them by giving advice…"

Breon yawned as he walked into a hallway. "I'll be going now…"

The contestants looked at each other for one last time before dispersing into the many hallways of the maze.

* * *

Alex walked through the hallway alone… or he was sure that he was alone. He was sure that he was the first one to rush into this hallway but he didn't know if anyone followed.

The hallway began to narrow as he made it further from the starting point to the point that Alex had to crouch.

"Sheesh… all of this just to find some candy to give to some Ursaring…" Alex muttered to himself as he wobbled slowly and carefully. He then nearly slid down a sudden slope in the hallway but he kept his balance. He reached the bottom of the slope and the hallway was getting narrower.

"Ugh… they really outdid themselves with this maze." A feminine yet stern voice came from the wide areas of the hallway.

Alex's eyes widened as he recognized the voice to be Crimson's. Despite the narrow space, he wobbled quicker, hoping that the Lucario won't catch up to him.

He groaned as the iron floor suddenly turned to a floor made up of rocks. He was now in another section of the maze.

He sighed in relief. as he finally emerged into another chamber. The walls were made up of brown rock. Vines were growing on it too. The floor was also made of rocks and was covered with bumps and cracks.

His relief turned to fear as Crimson appeared behind him, folding her arms.

"So… are you trying to run away from me?" Crimson theorized with a huff, crossing her arms. "Is it about what happened… between seasons? You haven't told anyone, right?"

"I told Luther," admitted Alex, leaning against the walls lazily. "Crimson… I want to start over… I don't want to be alone again."

"Sorry… I can't have a relationship with exes… perhaps, it is for the best. I can focus on my ninja training again," sighed Crimson, grabbing a small obscure yellow piece of candy from the corner of the chamber. "Well… I got one candy now… how about you?"

"None." Alex answered with an irked expression. "You grabbed a candy from under my nose."

"Well… I want immunity if we lose." Crimson explained, rolling her eyes as she walked to the other side of the room. "So… I will be going now." She ran into the hallway on the other side of the room, leaving Alex with a surprised expression.

"Why that-"

Alex was interrupted as the chamber started to shake.

He blinked. When he reopened his eyes, he was now in a different chamber. Water was floating out of a small hole on the wall and the chamber was flooded up to knees' length. The walls were similar from the rock chamber though.

Alex furiously stomped on the ground. "Stupid maze!"

* * *

Azure wobbled through a flooded hallway, which she accessed through the hallway she rushed into at the start. The flooded hallway was at the bottom of a steep slope but the hallway was still wide.

Azure had already collected ten candies after searching every nook and cranny in the hallway. Luckily, she was alone in the hallway so no one would steal from her. She was tempted to give them to Brianna but… how would that benefit her?

Azure respected her as a leader but she was not that submissive. She would never abandon her leader… just temporarily leave her… then return when the time is right.

She began to swim as the water levels rose higher. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion as a certain voice rang from nearby. She leaned her ear against the wall.

"Sand is omnipotent. Sand is ethereal." A solemn and dark voice rang through the wall.

Azure slowly furrowed a brow in thought. "Otis?" She backed away from the wall with an expression of surprise. "What… was that? I can't comprehend his words… hmmm… perhaps, I should find out how to understand his obsession of sand…" She shuddered as the floor began to shake. "M-maybe later… for now, I should find my way to the center and win myself immunity…"

 **000**

 **Azure: Well… Otis is such a strange person… I can't determine his motivation… I'm pretty sure it isn't sand.**

 **000**

Poppy hummed as she led Junior, Icy and Luther through a burning hallway. Poppy and Junior were both oblivious to the flames while Icy and Luther were sweating profusely from the heat.

Poppy cheerily turned to her teammates. "Team, how many pieces of candy did we find already?"

Luther shuddered. "I dunno… it's too hot… it makes me… feel uncomfortable…" Luther cringed upon remembering falling into a pool of lava. "Sorry if I'm not much of a help…"

Junior shook his head with a warm smile. "Don't worry… we got your back, dude."

Luther grinned. "Thanks… let's takk about stuff to distract me from this heat."

Icy nodded. "Good idea, Luther… I'm Ice Type and it is already weakening me…"

Poppy flashed a thumbs up. "Kay! I can start the conversation! Let's talk about our life outside the game! Well… I attempted to start college!"

"Well… how is it?" Icy asked the Brionne, clasping her hands inquisitively.

"Well… it's quite tedious… I'm fine with the concept of self-study but… my mind continues wandering… my crave for shipping and art overpowers my need to study." Poppy answered with a frown. "I need my ships and love!"

"Well… suppress your cravings, dude," suggested Luther. "You might be a good student if you focus really well! You're not just a yaoi artist… you're a special person."

Poppy giggled sheepishly. "Gee, you are very… kind with your words. They usually described me to be a fujoshi freak!"

"Poppy… don't believe what they say…" Junior said quietly. Despite evolving to his final form, the Incineroar's usual silence still remained but he was more confident. "You helped me with my silence… I want to help you too with your problems…" Junior blushed, crossing his arms. "You are even helping me with my …"

Poppy giggled. "I'm second to Juvia in terms of happy girls in this island!" She then tilted her head. "What's your real name though? Angel? Paulina? Polo?"

"Well… whatever Junior's real name is… he'll still love you." Icy said quietly.

"Well… let's continue finding some more candies!" Poppy attempted to change the subject with an embarrassed blush.

 **000**

 **Junior: Poppy is very cheerful most of the time… I rarely see her frown… and I like seeing her embarrassed.**

 **000**

Serall grumbled to himself as he scratched the walls of the maze violently. He was in a plain hallway… nothing out of the ordinary.

He then stopped as he heard footsteps from behind him. Turning around, he noticed Quentin, who was holding onto a large of candies with his ribbons.

Serall silently scowled. "Are you here to gloat that you have more candies than me? Wait and see, I'll get more soon!"

Quentin scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Serall… I'm just here to give you advice. You looks so loss… like an injured duckling." He chuckled condescendingly. "Well… you want to get back on Sari, right? Lower her chances in earning immunity. Take more candies than what is needed. Take all of the candies if you want. Revenge is a dish best served cold after all."

Serall folded his hands, furrowing a brow in suspicion. "To be frank, I don't trust you enough… you might manipulate me and just throw me under the bus…"

"Well… it's up to you if you want to trust me or not." Quentin pointed out with a lazy grin.

Serall grumbled as he walked away from the scene. Quentin solemnly frowned, shaking his head in disappointment.

Unbeknownst to the two, Meowzer eavesdropped on the conversation from the other hallway.

* * *

Meowzer gaped at the wall. She was standing in a cold chilly hallway. The floor was covered with ice so she attempted to keep her balance. Her eyes were wild and worried. She eavesdropped on Serall and Quentin's conversation. She suspected an alliance between the two.

She took out a joint, lighting it up and breathing the smoke. The others were beginning to plan. Heck, even Atticus was planning since day one. She was watching the Alolan Vulpix since day one and since she was not that high, she could actually still remember. She stroked her chin as she began to sweat nervously. "I can't form an alliance… they still hate me for last season… I have to lay low for the time being…"

Meowzer slowly hobbled to the opposite direction of the main chamber. She stopped as her ears twitched in discomfort. She felt that she wasn't alone. She made sure earlier that there were no one else. She didn't want them to find out about her addiction's return. She hid the joint with a sigh. She felt like she was back to her childhood, trapped in a game of lies.

And there was no escape.

Meowzer turned around to find Trevor. The Scrafty had a psychotic expression fixated on the Meowstic. Meowzer shuddered. She still had nightmares from last season and Trevor's presence wasn't helping. She spoke up with a shaky voice. "Trevor, dude… what are you doing here? Are you stalking me?"

Trevor chuckled. "Nah! I just stumbled upon this hallway. It's a good thing I ran into you. I can actually relate with you unlike my other teammates." He pocketed his hands with a grin. "Unlike you, I actually accept my insanity."

Meowzer clenched her fists. "I'm not insane! I underwent therapy… I'm feeling saner now!"

"Well… you did return to smoking weed." Trevor bluntly pointed out. "I dunno if you're lying or not but you can tell me. I'm not a hypocrite, I'm psychotic too."

Meowzer furrowed a brow as she positioned her hands onto her hips. "I already know. You're way too easy to read… ugh… I need a smoke… talking to you is making my head hurt."

Trevor snickered as he walked past Meowzer and disappearing further into the hallway. Meowzer blinked as she finally slipped.

"W-what… I don't… I can't…" Meowzer was a loss for words. The hoodlum has struck up a crucial conversation with her… and her addiction… why of all the people, Trevor brought it up. She shook her head, regaining her composure.

 **000**

 **Meowzer: Trevor has gone through this game… under the radar style… and he chose me for his first interaction… this sucks!**

 **000**

Kaiser grumbled to himself as he followed Clay and Breon through a glowing hallway. The walls, ceiling and the floor were made up of glowstones… brittle glowstones. Clay hummed as he held fifteen candies for the challenge. Clay, Breon and reluctantly Kaiser, were all cooperating for the challenge.

Kaiser cleared his throat, his supporting heads were growling silently. He took note of Clay's necklace. "Clay… tell me about the necklace. Does it give you supreme power?"

Clay chuckled with a weak grin. "You see… my master doesn't want me to evolve… so my master gave me that to prevent that from occuring." Clay smiled weakly. "I'm quite glad that you noticed, Kaiser. No one took much note about it last season." He sighed wistfully. "It is a gift… from my master… I can't lose it."

Breon yawned lethargically. "Well… I suppose that you're careful with that. I bet you even tuck it to sleep. Is this the reason why you don't want to evolve?"

Clay smiled somberly. "Well…" Clay's voice became more silent. "I'm nothing more but my master's tool."

Kaiser approached the Timburr, pulling the Everstone necklace off the latter's neck.

Clay flinched at this. "No… I'll evolve at this rate now… I need my necklace!"

Kaiser pocketed the necklace. "Well… you said that you're gonna help me, I'll try to help you… emphasis on try."

"Are you showing… sympathy, Kaiser?" Breon queried dryly with a small smirk. "I'm impressed at the progress."

Clay nodded, still trembling 's act. "Y-yeah… as my master usually says… b-baby steps."

Kaiser growled but he was secretly smiling inside. He felt that he csn actually trust the duo. The first two boots… luckily, that wouldn't happen any time soon, right?

* * *

Juvia followed Izaya through a strange hallway. The walls were lined with strange markings. The floor was gold carpeted and lightbulbs were bulging out of the ceiling.

Juvia was quite an optimist. She was always smiling… but she felt uncomfortable yet happy for some reason. She felt that Vivian and Izaya's hinted crush was quite… cute. Juvia found Vivian and Izaya cute too. She lightly blushed with a giggle.

Izaya furrowed a brow as he turned to the Shuppet. "Juvia, are you feeling alright? I told you about my visits to Vivian during the first challenge last night… are you caught up on that?" Izaya frowned, tipping his fedora. "Nevertheless, I never felt anything extreme."

"Oops! I was just fantasizing again," giggled Juvia with a weak grin. She tilted her head in confusion. "One question, where was Vivian staying? I never saw her other than the first day and sometimes last season… does she have a collection of explicit videos?"

Izaya chuckled at Juvia's clueless nature. "Juvia… I see you're not familiar with her. She helped me… during that one episode. I feel that you'll get along with each other… perhaps, we could see her later."

"Ooh! That sounds cool, Izzy!" commented Juvia with an innocent smile that would make anyone say 'awww'.

Izaya chuckled, tipping his fedora. The Shuppet always made him feel better. He was worried if either he or Juvia would leave first… either way, it won't end well.

And the game was getting darker…

* * *

Sari giggled psychotically as she entered a dimly-lit chamber. An Ursaring stood in front a gate which was coloured gray. She only had ten candies but she was lucky enough to end up near the end this early.

The Ursaring growled at her defensively. "Intruder alert! A'm shrek 'n' I'm nae merciful tae intruders!"

Sari held one candy on her right hand with a grin. "Don't you like candy? Lemme in… even if it's only one. At least, you'll have candy. Either that or I beat you into a pulp."

Shrek clenched his fists. "I'm nae that submissive tae candy! I'm bonny sure I'm stronger than you… donkey!"

Sari aimed a flamethrower at the Ursaring, who quickly dodged. Shrek scratched the Salazzle, who hissed in disgust.

Emerging from another hallway were PJ and Marina. Marina looked bored as she watched the fight while PJ quickly covered his eyes in fright.

"Wow… we only have twelve candies." Marina commented. She turned to PJ. "Let's snatch some of Sari's candies."

"But she's in our team. Can't we just share?" PJ said heroically, covering his eyes. "Besides… stealing is a crime!"

Marina rolled her eyes. She then called out to Sari. "Hey Sari! We can just share candies to access the final chamber!"

Sari growled as she continued to dodge Shrek's slashes. "Nah! I'm still busy!"

"Stealing it is then," muttered Marina as she used Bubblebeam on the Salazzle.

"Traitorous bitch!" hissed Sari, collapsing on the ground in pain, due to type advantages.

Marina scoffed as she took some candies on the ground next to Salazzle. She shot Sari a dirty grin. "You're too busy anyway, right?"

PJ frowned. "Dana, Jester and I do not approve of this! Stealing never solves anything!" Besides, don't we need the whole team?"

"They can get their own candies. I want immunity… it would increase my chances in making it far." Marina retorted with a competitive smirk. She was trembling internally. She didn't think that she was actually going to defeat Sari. She had near to no backbone in reality.

PJ frowned as he followed Marina, who handed over the twenty candies to Shrek, who licked his lips in anticipation.

The door suddenly opened, revealing a large golden bell behind it.

Marina turned to PJ. "Are you with me or against me?"

"We were coincidentally on the same hallway for a reason, Marina," remarked PJ with a hopeful expression. "I'll try to help you… so I'm with you… for now."

Marina shrugged as she entered the new chamber. As PJ entered, the door reclosed itself.

Sari smacked the floor next to her in dismay. "Bastards and bitches! They didn't even take me with them!"

Shrek chuckled. "That's what you get for messing with me."

Sari blinked in disbelief. "You can talk normally?!"

* * *

Walter continued to mumble noisily to himself. Usually, he was very silent but he had a lot on his mind… one of those things: Brianna. She was obnoxious and was quite a bad leader. He can't stand her antics.

He shuddered, left eyes starting to twitch. "At this rate, I'll be… louder!" He shuddered at the thought. He frowned as he started to hear footsteps from behind him. "What… was that?"

Rotating his head, Walter froze in place. Brianna jeered at the Whismur cockily. Walter bit his tongue… he was unlucky enough to be on the same hallway as Brianna.

Brianna sneered at Walter. "I remember you! You're the one who mistaken a gold ring to be gold!" She giggled haughtily. "Thankfully, we won due to my skills."

"You're way too self-absorbed… BITCH!" scoffed Walter, starting to lose his composure. "You don't have skills! You're just a freaky whiny bitch with no social skills!" He smiled apathetically. "I'll be the one who'll see you off as you leave… which is sometime soon!"

Brianna silently growled. She then noticed that Walter held a handful of candies. With a sneer, she kicked the Whismur's left arm. Walter howled in pain, dropping the candies. Brianna greedily picked them up with her front paws.

Walter began to cough up some blood. Brianna furrowed a brow in suspicion. She only kicked Walter's arm… nothing serious.

Walter opened his mouth… using Hyper Voice.

Brianna quickly covered her ears. "Shut up, lackey! You have no uses, you're just a silent bastard!"

Walter grinned, bottom lip stained with blood. "I won't stop! Even if I would be your rival, I won't stop!"

Brianna quickly used Leaf Blade on Walter. Walter's eyes widened as he fell to the floor in pain. His conflict with Brianna might be small… but he had a dislike of her from the start. Walter was now on the floor, in fetal position. He gritted his teeth in anger.

"What did I ever do to you?! I'm a good leader!" grunted Brianna with a jeer. "Insubordinations is not tolerated in my kingdom!"

Walter close his eyes.

His second interaction with Brianna was a failure.

* * *

Darren cautiously followed Maya. The Gardevoir kept rambling on to herself about how stupid sand was… and it was concerning Darren. He thought that it might because of Maya's future debate with Otis.

Darren spoke up with a shaky voice, "Maya, you alright? Do you want me to sing a song for you? The debate isn't that serious."

Maya frowned. "It's a game, Darren… and I haven't lose in a game before…" Maya continued to ramble. "Hmmm… what should I say? Sand sucks… sand is useless, lame and very… unscrewworthy!"

As Darren was about to reply, he bumped into another contestant… a very sharp contestant.

Metilda growled at him, embracing Jester protectively. "Are you a friend or an enemy?"

"I'm a friend, dude," answered Darren melodiously. He noticed Jester, trapped in a tight embrace. "Umm… I think that you're hurting Jester… you know, your blades."

"It's fine…" Jester said silently.

"You must be losing HP from this," commented Maya, snapping out of her thoughts on the debate. "Metilda's blades are as sharp as Groudon's Precipice Blades."

"I got used to it," muttered Jester with a shrug. Though, he looks as if he was struggling to break free.

"Your lying skills are none." Maya said dryly.

Jester grunted as he finally broke free. His body was now covered with deep wounds. He sighed in relief, running off behind Metilda.

Metilda blinked in disbelief. "He… we were supposed to look for candies together." She now had a scowl on her face. "Time for me to play rough!" With a loud growl, she rushed after the Treeko.

Darren blinked. "Such a strange friendship."

 **000**

 **Darren: Are Metilda and Jester even friends? Doesn't look like it...**

 **000**

Violet licked her lips as she pursued Randall. She wondered what secrets the Incineroar hid. Besides, she wanted a love triangle with Randall and Jaxxon. She held twenty candies already and was supposed to be searching to the chamber… but Violet thought that she could follow Randall.

The Incineroar looked around, eyes narrowed in suspicion. He frowned. He noticed the Liepard, casually trailing behind him. "Violet… why are you following me?"

"You have a nice back," joked Violet playfully. She licked her paws. "How many candies do you got, big boy?"

"What?" Randall commented flatly. "I won't tell you. You're on the opponent's team."

"Tell me some of your secrets then." Violet wheedled. "I stayed silent for far too long. I need… drama in my life."

Randall growled. "I'm playing twice as strategic this time. I lost one already, I won't lose a second time… I'm not dumb enough to blindly tell you my secrets."

"Tell me about your relationship with Alex then," cooed Violet with a playful smirk. "You seem… close~"

Randall stopped, turning the Liepard. "We're just friends. Just because I'm hanging out with with constantly doesn't mean a relationship."

Violet sneered. "Well… can I join a threesome with you and Jaxxon?"

"No… our relationship is… very exclusive," muttered Randall, lightly blushing. "We don't want a third person."

"Well… if you're in need of romance, you know who to call~"

* * *

Jester continued to run, breathing heavily in nervousness. He was away from Metilda for once. He needed a break from the Bisharp… and that break is now! He was currently in a frozen hallway.

 **CRASH**

Jester fell to the floor after bumping into another contestant. Standing up, he noticed Meowzer. The Meowzer was sprawled on the floor, groaning in pain. Meowzer sat up, eyes widening as she noticed the Treeko.

"Jester! Sorry… I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." Meowzer apologized, rubbing the back of her head. "Are you okay? You look injured…" She noticed the scars on the Treeko's body. "Wow… Metilda really dug into your skin…"

Jester chuckled nervously. "Y-yeah…" He cocked his head down wistfully. "I… got used to it… but I need a break… the darkness… might return if I feel too much stress…" He sighed, eyes turning bleak. "Meowzer… I feel that I can tell you… I have… a condition."

"Shadows… right?" Meowzer asked, calmly with a cool and composed expression. She shuddered nervously. "I… have faint memories of shadows from last season… when I strangled that Comf girl…" She shook her head with a nervous chuckle. "But… I'm feeling fine… most of the time…"

"Are you still… using those shadows?" Jester asked curiously, twiddling his pointer fingers.

"Well… it stopped." Meowzer explained with a weak smile. "It stopped after some therapy after the first season. I went to a psychologist… but… I… went back… to… weed…"

Jester gasped silently in disbelief. "W-what? Isn't that what made you push Ace off the balcony of Tapu Bulu's mansion?"

"Correction. It was the lack of weed," corrected Meowzer, crossing her arms. She sighed with a griefed expression. "My mind… is currently a blur… my memories are hidden behind a hazy fog. And… my eyes still turn red when I sleep… I'm scared." Meowzer held her head. "I... am really scared…"

"Meowzer… I want you to help me." Jester proposed firmly, usual stutter disappearing from his tone. "I don't want to hurt anyone… so please help me with this… I can't evolve… and I keep hurting others with this ability."

"Your ability is what prevents you from evolving," explained Meowzer glumly. She then nodded. "Well… I can help… might get me some good karma after last season."

Jester smiled to this before wobbling away.

 **000**

 **Jester: Meowzer's neither a stoner nor a psycho… I don't know what she is!**

 **000**

 **Meowzer: Helping Jester might get difficult… but I'll still try!**

 **000**

 **RING… RING!**

"Marina and PJ rang the bell so they're immune for the next elimination ceremony the Noctowls participate." rang Nihilego's voice through some hidden intercom.

Willow frowned to this. She wanted immunity. She stared at the twenty candies that she carried with her stubby arms. She then stared at Hazuki and Drake, who were ahead of her. Her mouth watered. This is a perfect chance to talk to Hazuki… then she'll find the final chamber and snag her immunity.

Willow wobbled towards the duo with a grin. "Hazuki. 's a coincidence that we ended up with each other in the maze!" She giggled. "We can talk about your lovelife, Hazuki~"

Hazuki furrowed a brow in confusion. "It wasn't a coincidence, remember?"

* * *

 _Back at the main chamber, Willow stopped Drake and Hazuki from moving into a hallway._

 _"Willow… why did you stop us?" Drake queried the Wormadam, crossing his arms. "The others might take the lead from us."_

 _"I want us to be a trio!" chirped Willow with a wide smile. "We can do this all the time! In every challenge! We can be an alliance of some sort!"_

 _Hazuki frowned. "I'm not looking for an alliance at the moment."_

 _Willow held Hazuki's arm tightly. "Pulleeaassseee! I just want some companions!" She closed her eyes, blurting out, "Mazes are very scary when you're alone!"_

 _"Fine!" moaned Hazuki, mildly annoyed._

 _Drake face-palmed_.

* * *

"Oh yeah… I forgot." Willow said with a weak grin. She frowned. "Sooooo… let's have some small talk while we find for candy!"

"We can just use yours." Drake pointed out with an impatient expression. "As you can see, we can all enter the chamber at the same time… the whole team can… buuuttt everyone was too impatient and ran separately."

"Must be because of the individual immunities," theorized Willow with a giggle. She then grinned. "Why don't we actually form an actual alliance?! Three votes isn't that much but it can help~"

Hazuki shrugged. "I'm still not looking for an alliance…" Hazuki sighed. "But… three votes are better than one so I guess accepting is the best option."

"Fine… I guess… to help my chances," muttered Drake, eyes averted from the Wormadam. "Because… I feel that I might be one of the early boots if I don't act quickly."

Wormadam clapped her stubby hands. "Oohhh! We'll be Team Shipanzeee!" Her expression darkened. "We'll crush our opponents and ship them forcibly!"

"That sounded awfully dark, dude," remarked Hazuki.

 **000**

 **Willow: Despite the alliance, SHIPPING HAZUKI IS STILL TOP PRIORITY! Though… I need to survive longer so I can do that soooo this alliance would help.**

 **000**

Azure was swimming through a hallway. The hallway was nearly submerged with water as it was between two slopes to prevent water from spreading to other chamber. She had twenty candies inside of her mouth since well… she didn't have any hands! Weird that she can jot down notes.

Azure stopped as she noticed a shadow ahead. She froze at her spot. She needed to be cautious… it might be a friend… or an enemy. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion as Meowzer was now standing in front of her, eyes twitching strangely. Her notebook fell to the floor with a thud

Azure then felt… lighter. Her neck… someone was…

Her eyes started to bulge out of her eye sockets in pain. But… Meowzer was just standing in front of her, eyes widening in recognition… Comf… she strangled Comf last season and seeing someone being strangled in front of her brought back some memories.

 **POP**

A tiny wet and juicy eyeball fell out of the Azurill's right eye socket. Azure fell to the floor, face lacking any emotion. The candies inside her mouth… was all gone… she accidentally swallowed them. A shadow behind Azure quickly grabbed the eyeball, gobbling it all up before suddenly disappearing, picking up Azure's notebook on the way. Azure was gasping for air… Meowzer gulped before scampering away.

"Okie dokie! How many- AAAHHHH! IT'S AZURILL-GIRL!" Poppy began screaming in fear as she noticed the limp Azurill on the ground. "What madness is this?!"

Azure's fainted body began to twitch. The Azurill then stopped breathing. Junior crouched beside the Azurill then began checking for her pulse.

He sighed in relief. "She still has a steady pulse… but we need to bring her to Nihilego before her condition deteriorates!"

* * *

Sari groaned as she struggled to stand up. Marina's attack was quite strong… Sari's back cracked as she managed to stand up.

"My back… hurts," muttered Sari, supporting her back with her right hand.

She then noticed that Shrek was slumped against the gate, mumbling to himself. Sari decided to sneak into the chamber… Shrek was asleep. It's not like he could do anything.

As she staggered towards the gate, she was pushed back onto the ground, spine starting to split in half. She sneered as she noticed Alex and Crimson in the same chamber so she suspected that one of them pushed her to the ground. Alex had Crimson pinned to the wall.

She tried to stand up but her lower body has gone limp. Her usual psychotic stare vanished, replaced with a look of grief and worry.

Meanwhile, Alex frowned at the Lucario. "I finally got you trapped! If you don't want to get back together, help me with the challenge then! Let's share candies!"

"Never!" growled Crimson, kicking Alex's right arm. "Septh controlled me last season! I won't be controlled again!" With a swift motion, the Lucario kicked the Sceptile's crotch. She gritted her teeth in anger as she ran away into another hallway.

Alex groaned as he crumpled to the floor, holding his privates in pain. "That bit- Crimson… I hate you so fucking much!"

Sari grinned as she crawled towards the Sceptile, using her arms as she dragged her limp feet. "You pushed me to the floor, eh? Thankfully, you're an enemy!" She use Flamethrower at the lizard. Alex groaned as his body was now covered with burns.

 **000**

 **Alex: Crimson… you devil woman! What did I ever do to you?!**

 **000**

"Otis has rang the bell so he's immune! Carry on, everyone!" came Nihilego's voice.

"Shit! I never even saw Otis!" uttered Ace with a frown.

He was in a group with Evelyn and Ashley. Evelyn was yawning with a bored and deadpanned expression. Ashley was looking around the hallway nervously. Seconds ago, they heard loud footsteps, which unnerved them… well Ace and Ashley, Evelyn was just feeling bored at that moment.

"Well… Otis might be very hidden." Evelyn pointed out dryly. "Maybe, he hid under sand."

"Stop joking, Evelyn." Ashley whispered, face still pale from fear. "I think… someone is hiding nearby… and might ambush us…" Her stubby arms trembled, nearly dropping the candies that she held.

"Ashley, be careful with the candies! You might drop it," chided Evelyn with an impatient expression. She then furrowed a brow in curiosity. "On another note, how many candies do we have?"

"Twenty." Ace answered huskily. "We're just going to find the final chamber then we're set for immunity."

"Yay. Immunity." Evelyn cheered dryly.

"Evelyn, add some pep to your expressions." Ashley suggested with a frown. "You seem… lonely and very bored."

"I just want inspiration," yawned Evelyn lethargically.

 **000**

 **Ashley: Evelyn is such a Dwebble Downer! Can't she be happy for once? Immunity is awesome!**

 **000**

Luke smiled weakly as he leaned against the wall of a barren chamber. Next to him were a pile of candies. He planned to share them with anyone, who wanted to align themselves with him. He was a 'chill' person but he knew that chillness never got anyone far. He furrowed a brow as Sora emerged from the hallway in front of him.

"Oh… bruh, you're the one stalking me now," said Luke smugly, remembering his last conversation with Sora.

"This is just a coincidence!" argued Sora, folding her wings as she blushed in embarrassment. "I never meant to run into you again!"

Before Luke could reply, they were interrupted by a long yawn. Atticus emerged from another hallway with a bored expression.

"Tsk tsk, you had your first lovers' quarrel, I presume," mused Atticus with a smug smile. "Or is it an alliance?"

"Bruh, as Sora said, this is just a coincidence," retorted Luke with a calm expression. "We're just fellow Noctowls, chilling out."

"I'm not chilling out!" spat Sora bitterly. "I'm here to win!" She then noticed the pile of candies next to the Taillow. She greedily grabbed them. "Luke! I have your candies. What are you gonna do, chill bird?!"

Luke smiled. "Bruh, let's share… this is a bad move for the team. Share it with me and Atticus… makes the challenge easier for the team."

Atticus nodded, surprised that the chill bird actually made good points. "Let's go together… we'll earn immunity together."

"Fine." Sora accepted defeat as she followed Luke and Atticus into a hallway.

Unbeknownst to them, someone was lurking with a blank stare.

 **000**

 **Flint: Damn! Are they in an alliance?! I'm fucking screwed if they are… hmmm… Zane and I can be teamies! We did bonded earlier!**

 **000**

 **Otis: My sand told me everything… I can't accept defeat! I may have immunity but I still don't have the money!**

 **000**

Ruby grumbled to herself as she sped through a hallway. Due to the lack of arms, she held the candies with her front paw. This was only challenge number three and the contestants were already divided thanks to the challenge.

She wondered what was Nihilego's motive for the challenge. She stopped as Lance flew past her, candies in his talons. Ruby frowned. The others all had twenty candies are were now finding their way to the final chamber. She wanted immunity… but it was running out very fast.

Her feet screeched to a halt as Rae was squatting on the floor in front of her with an annoyed expression.

"Rae, you're blocking the road!" Ruby shouted with an irked expression.

"Don't blame me," mumbled Rae, crossing her arms. "Poppy, Luther, Icy and Junior nearly made me fall over. They looked like they were in a rush. I noticed that they were carrying Azure." Rae groaned as she stood up. "They fucking kidnapped Azure! We can't win if Azure is down for the count!"

"Well… then go get here." Ruby suggested sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"I'm no stranger to sarcasm." Rae answered dryly. "Buuuut, I'll just go and find the final chamber. Immunity is as good as mine." Rae smirked. "Then I can troll 24/7!"

Ruby blinked in confusion. "You're nuts, aren't you?"

Rae shrugged, expression lacking any care. "I. Don't. Fucking. Care!" She scowled. "Ruby, just fucking go before I get too attached to you! Ugh!"

Rae turned around. "See you in the flip side, Ruby…" Rae walked away, a gloomy air covering the entire room as she left.

Ruby blinked in utter confusion. "Rae… is a confusing person…" As she walked away, a shadow appeared from behind her, holding a large bottle, its contents unknown. Ruby stopped walking as she felt a presence from behind her.

"Didn't Rae left already?" Ruby muttered to herself.

As the figure was about to smash the bottle on the Skuntank, Ruby quickly ran away. The shadow stomped its feet in anger before walking away.

 **000**

 **Ruby: *shudders* The maze… is very scary… I felt a presence behind me… who can it be?**

 **000**

Poppy, Icy, Luther and Junior were running around the maze franticly, carrying Azure. The Azurill's pulse… disappeared. She choked on candies and her right eyes was missing. Poppy was looking around frantically, jotting down notes.

"This is bad, really bad!" exclaimed Poppy, sweating profusely. "We need to complete the challenge but Azure's is banged up really good!"

"Randall and Violet have made it. Violet is fourth person immune for the Noctowl while Randall is first for the Octilleries! The challenge is picking up really well!" chirped Nihilego through the intercom.

"Oh no… I want immunity but Azure needs medical attention!" Poppy gulped, eyes riddled with worry.

"You go… I can take Azure." Junior suggested silently, clasping his hands.

"Junior, you're risking immunity." Icy pointed out, furrowing a brow. "This might be a stupid move… we can just leave Azure… they hurted Luther… one of the Noctowls must've hurt Azure too!"

"Icy… that's kinda harsha," commented Luther with a frown. "Besides… Azure might die… and-"

The group was interrupted as Comf towards them with a tired expression.

"Guys… can I join your group? I'm not exactly popular and-" Comf then noticed the brutally injured Azure then frowned. "Awww… I must've missed a lot. Staying under the radar fucking sucks!"

"Comf… can't you see that Azure is injured?!" Poppy bluntly pointed out, gesturing to the Azurill.

"Wow… she looks… bad," remarked Comf with a small smile tugging at the right side of her mouth. "Welp, let's just go and complete the challenge!"

"We didn't allow you to be in the group yet." Icy said flatly.

"Guys… Azure's gone." Junior pointed out firmly. "Someone… took her."

"In a one second timeframe?" Poppy questioned in disbelief. Her eyes widened. "Let's go the final chamber! Someone fast in the Noctowls must've taken Azure to complete the challenge!"

 **000**

 **Poppy: We played nice and they just took Azure… oh well! This Brionne's gonna pull out the big guns now!**

 **000**

 **Icy: I decided to up my game! Even if I have to play hardball, I'll win this!**

 **000**

Brianna gathered most of her teammates in Shrek's chamber. Standing in front of her were Hazuki, Willow, Drake, Trevor and Walter, who was crying in pain from Brianna using Leaf Blade on him. The chamber's floor was strangely covered with blood.

"Okay… we only have to wait for Azure and Raven, right?" Brianna queried her teammates. "Well… while waiting, let us form an alliance!"

"I… won't… form… an… alliance… with a bitch like you!" Walter growled with a threatening expression. "Never…"

Trevor shrugged. "Meh. Whatever will help me get further into the game."

"Same." Drake agreed with a nod.

Moments later, Raven arrived, carrying Azure on his back. The Azurill's body was limp, cold, hard and unmoving.

"Let's go then!" Brianna yelled.

"What 'bout the others?" Trevor questioned, scratching the back of his head in confusion.

"They can handle themselves." Brianna snarled, walking towards the Ursaring. She quickly took out the candies before Shrek could attack. "Here! Use it well!"

Shrek nods, grabbing the candies. The gate behind him began to open. Brianna grinned as she ran into the final chamber. Trevor, Drake, Hazuki, Willow, Walter, Raven and Azure followed.

"Brianna, Trevor, Drake, Hazuki, Willow and Walter are immune but they're now up to twelve members since Azure and Raven are here too! Octilleries, hurry up!"

 **000**

 **Raven: Hmmmppphhh! LORD GIRATINA WASN'T WITH ME TODAY! THAT IS WHY I AM NOT IMMUNE. DO NOT BELITTLE HIM JUST BECAUSE OF MY MINOR MESSUP!**

 **000**

Juvia shuddered as a cold chill went down her nonexistent spine. She floated next to Izaya with a frown.

"Izzy… for some reason, I feel uncomfortable," commented Juvia with a slight shudder. She floated closer to the Crobat. "I feel… a malicious presence in this maze… something deadly."

Izaya nodded in agreement, eyes sharpening to a glare. "If that presence ever tries to hurt you, I'll protect you."

Izaya's eyes sharpened into a glare as a scowl invaded his features. "I know… if that presence tries to hurt you… let's just say, he'll never see the light of day ever again." The Crobat was calmer that he invited his lover to visit Vivian but the strange, unnatural presence was quite unsettling for them. Izaya reading a playing card on his right wing, examining his surroundings cautiously.

Juvia gulped, levitating the candies over her head. "Izzy… it's… in front of us…"

Izaya silently flicked the card forward.

"Ouch!" yelled a flamboyant voice within the shadows. A blue body emerged from the shadows, right arm bleeding from the playing care. It was Flint the Golduck. "That smarts! It's only a playing card and I still got hurt."

Zane frowned as he stood next to the Golduck. "Izaya, was it? Don't hurt Flint! We're just searching candies for the challenge." Zane frowned. "Flint and I are teammates!" Zane quickly grabbed Flint before running away from the gamblers.

Izaya blinked in confusion. "Well… that was anticlimactic…" He then noticed that the Shuppet was strangely frowning. "Juvia… is something wrong?"

Juvia sighed, shaking her head. "Nothing… I just felt something…"

Izaya looked at the Shuppet with a concerned expression. The gambling bat was quite caring for Juvia. He would do anything to protect her from any harm. "Juvia… let's go… perhaps… this presence is dangerous."

Juvia nodded, following Izaya further into the hallway.

* * *

Alex frowned as he walked around the maze, body covered with burns. He was searching for candies. Chasing after Crimson made him lose focus on his true goal: winning the game.

He groaned as his leg accidentally hit the wall. "Dammit! I should've focused harder. It's my rivalry with Randall all over again." He strangely smiled as he said the Incineroar's name. To be honest, Alex looked up to Randall as a role model now.

He sighed as he picked up a piece of candy from the ground. He needed to get immunity. It would really help his chances.

He steeled his nerves as he heard loud footsteps ahead of him. He clenched his fist, ready to attack.

"Alex! Randall's friend!" yelled Poppy, emerging from the darkness. Icy, Luther, Comf and Junior followed her. "Wanna join my group? It would be fun!" The Brionne frowned. "Those Noctowls sinned against me… time to activate my sociopathic behavior! Alex, you can help me!"

Alex blinked in confusion. "What… happened with you? What do you mean with the Noctowls sinning against you?"

"They kidnapped Azure when we were just gonna bring her to Nihilego for medical attention," explained Poppy, pouting childishly. "I'm just being nice! If I were rude, I would've left Azure to die."

"But… she's a Noctowl. It's the Noctowls' responsobility." Icy silently pointed out. "They hurted us… I can't forgive their… misdeeds."

Comf nodded in agreement with the ice ghost. "I agree."

"Icy… I'm feeling chipper alre- alre- already." Luther said with a sheepish grin. "You don't have to be harsh with them…"

Icy sighed, frowning. "F-fine… but if they hurt anyone… especially you Luther… I'll not hold back…" The Froslass was still shocked from her boyfriend submerging under molten magma. Luther was fine since Nihilego provided them with Sacred Ashes during midnight… but Icy was still tense. Sacred Ashes was pretty rare and didn't heal all of Luther's wounds… just enough to make him feel better. "Luther might… actually get fatally injured…"

Poppy grinned consolingly. "Icy! Do not worry! Luther won't get hurt again! I would help you if he did get hurt!" Poppy giggled creepily. "I can even write yaoi to make you guys feel better. It always help."

Alex scratched the back of his head with a confused expression. "Dial back a bit… what did happen to Azure?"

"I dunno. One of her eyes was missing… ooh, it was her right eye," explained Poppy with a smile. "Those Noctowls don't care about her at all. She needed medical attention."

Alex blinked in disbelief before shaking his head. "That aside, let's go together and find the final chamber to earn us some immunity." Alex sighed, eyes darting around the hallway in discomfort. "Let's do this… and win!"

 **000**

 **Alex: Wow… Azure must feel shitty right now! I should know. I was in a full body cast for a duration of last season… *sighs* Ugh… I was stupid back then! I got wiser so I'm not going down without a fight!**

 **000**

Ruby was walking through a dimly-lit hallway, thinking about strategy to herself. She knew that only two people left the island… well three if you included Donald but she needed to be cautios. She didn't want to end up like Sophia and Septh.

She stopped, furrowing a brow as she noticed an ominous shadow further into the hallway. She bit her tongue. She didn't want to risk herself.

"Ruby, so we meet again," came a condescending voice emanating fron the shadow. Ruby narrowed her eyes as Quentin emerged from the shadows, gripping to candy with his ribbons. Quentin grinned cheekily at the Skuntank. "My my! You looked… very lost. Mind if I help you?"

Ruby frowned at the Sylveon. "I'm not lost, Quentin. I'm just thinking to myself."

Quentin chuckled sheepishly. "Ruby, what if we aligh with each other? Might improve our chances. I suppose that you were thinking about strategy… right?" Quentin sighed as he plopped one unwrapped candy into his mouth. "Mmmm… well, what do you say? Are you in or not? You can trust me."

Ruby forced a grin. She was not a fool. She can see through the Sylveon's facade. Quentin was good at acting but not good enough. She chuckled internally. She could play along… for now. "Sure. Extra vote for elimination." Ruby furrowed a brow. "Who do we vote off first?"

Quentin narrowed his eyes but he continued to speak. "Alex. I suspect animosity between him and Crimson. Crimson would vote for him, along with her hypothetical allies. Voting with her would put us on her good side and would benefit us. Alex made the merge last time. We can't let him make it far again. He only lost because he chose to eliminate himself. He could've won. He's obviously stronger than the top 4."

Ruby stroked her chin in thought. She actually thought that Quentin's idea was pretty good. "Sure. Removes a threat in the game."

Quentin forced a kind smile. "Happy to work with you."

 **000**

 **Ruby: He may be fooling everyone but he's not fooling me! I'm gonna keep my eye on him!**

 **000**

 **Quentin: *yawns* Ruby is soooo obvious. I know that she can see through my petty facade. *smirks* Doesn't matter. She'll just leave early. For now, she's my second pawn. Hehehehe. I'll play along for now!**

 **000**

Luke, Sora and Atticus finally made it to Shrek's chamber. The Ursaring yawned as he leaned against the gate with a bored expression. As the trio of Noctowls approached the Ursaring, Ace's trio emerged from another hallway. The maze shook as they emerged.

Ace frowned as he noticed the trio of Noctowls. "Shit! The Noctowls are way ahead! Randall's the only one for our group!" He turned to his companions. "Ashley. Evelyn. We must delay them!"

Evelyn blinked, uninterested. "Fine… I'm doing this for the team." Evelyn bloated her cheeks as she began to sway her hips. From her flower hat, green powder began to drift through the wind. "My dance of sleep would put you in a trance!"

Sora used Wing Attack, blowing the powder back towards the Liligant. Evelyn, Ashley and Ace quickly jumped out of the way.

Ashley clenched her fists as she lunged at the Staraptor. "We lost twice already! Let us win for once!"

Sora's widened as Ashley's fists nears her face. As she was about to dodge, Luke pushed her out of he way. "Ooof!" She has hit the wall as a result. She groaned as her wings felt her right leg. It was quite sore. She fixated a glare at the Tailow. "Luke! What the fuck was the for?! You nearly broke my leg!"

"Sorry, bruh," apologized Luke, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Impulse."

Atticus frowned as he fired a beam of light at the Whimsicott. "Remember. Close-ranged attacks are reckless. You must always be wary."

Ashley's eyes widened as her mind began to be covered with confusion. "W-what?!"

Ace gritted his teeth as he aimed a Scald attack at the Alolan Vulpix. Atticus yawned, slowly dodging it with ease. Atticus yawned as he held the candies with his front paw, aiming an Ice Beam at Evelyn. "Poor cooperation."

Evelyn growled, aiming an Energy Ball at Atticus. "Take this, you lethargic fuck!" Shooting a green ball of energy, Evelyn dodged the Ice Beam with a graceful twirl. "Inspired or not, I'm a dancer! I have… skills."

"Bruhs, sorry for this," whispered Luke as he used Wing Attack at the confused Ashley.

Ashley luckily walked out of the way with a dazed expression. "Mommy, is that you?"

Ruby and Quentin then both emerged from the hallway Ace's group emerged from. Quentin hid a grin as he watched the ensuing battle while Ruby frowned. Ruby shot a ball of sludge at the Alolan Vulpix.

Since Atticus didn't see it coming, he was quickly blinded by the sludge. "I can't see… so this is how blind people feel."

Quentin forced a sheepish grin, firing a Moonblast at Atticus. The poor Alolan Vulpix was sent hitting the wall with a hard thud.

Atticus yawned, strangely keeping his calm despite the pain he was feeling. Sora wanted to fight back but her leg was still sore. Luke was trembling in fear, forcing a chill grin, which ended up looking very awkward.

Ruby gritted her teeth triumphantly. "Great! Let's go while they're distracted!"

"Shouldn't someone delay them?" Evelyn pointed out flatly.

"Ashley can do it!" mused Quentin, eyeing the dazed Whimsicott with a worried expression.

As Ace was about to retaliate, Ruby approached Shrek with twenty candies. "Here ya go!"

"Hehehehehehe! This is enough to last me for all winter." Shrek chuckled creepily.

"You have issues," commented Ruby flatly.

"Shaddup," grumbled Shrek, rolling his eyes, hastily grabbing the candies from the Skuntank.

Ruby turned to her companions. "Let's go! Except for Ashley who'll keep these guys in check."

Shrek opened the gates, revealing a bell in the center of an empty chamber behind the gate. Ruby, Quentin and Evelyn all entered the chamber without any hesitation. Ace gave his sister one last look before entering the chamber. Shrek then reclosed the doors, yawning out of boredom. He was in an urge to fight and Sari was… taken away by Nihilego through a wormhole.

Ashley blinked, breaking out of the confusion trance. She looked around franticly. "D-did… the others just left me?"

Sora tried to reach for the Whimsicott with her better talon but it was too short. She groaned in annoyance. She turned to Atticus, who was attempting to remove the sludge from his eyes. "Hey Atticus, what do we do? The Whimsicott from the other team is still here."

"Well… get our candies first… we'll deal with her if she gets in our way." Atticus said nonchalantly.

"Ruby, Quentin, Evelyn and Ace are all immune. Five people have gone for the Octilleries. Hurry up!" chimed in Nihilego's voice impatiently. " Oh yeah! Sari is… being treated so the Noctowls have one less person that needs to complete the challenge."

Atticus yawned with a chuckle. "Sweet. We only need Maya, Darren and some others and we win this challenge."

"I won't let you win!" Ashley intoned at a battle stance.

Sora grinned at Atticus as she finally stood up. She then turned to Luke, who smiled back. "Let's do this… but Luke, umm… do your best."

Luke gulped with a nod. The Taillow quickly pecked the Whimsicott, who was still slightly dazed.

Ashley groaned as the attack hit. "Dammit! My head feels heavy for some reason!"

 **000**

 **Ashley: They were all hard hitters. Heck, even Atticus was surprisingly strong! Even with the toxic sludge on his face…**

 **000**

Poppy's group then emerged into another empty chamber. In the center of the chamber was a dusty pedestal. Resting on it was a dusty chest. There were hallways leading to other areas of the maze too.

Poppy curiously approached the chest. "Ooh! A chest! Let's keep it! It might contain something important!"

Alex stroked his chin in contemplation. "Most likely. Though, it might be a trap… we must tread lightly on this."

"Let's just snatch it," pouted Comf with a bored expression. She giggled. "I can-"

Comf fell to the ground as she was smacked at the back of her head. Standing over her body was a smirking Rae.

The Noivern hovered to the chest. "This chest is mine! I may not have any more chance to get immunity but this chest might hold something better."

"Rae! That chest is ours! We found it first!" growled Alex, clenching his fists. "Stay away fron it and we'll spare you."

Rae rolled her eyes, quickly firing a Boomburst at the Octilleries. It was quite powerful as the Octilleries all fell to the ground.

Rae smirked. "Wow. You're all bark and no bite." She turned to the chest, grabbing it with her hands. "Hehehehehe! Whatever this holds is mine!"

Alex furrowed a brow as he noticed remorse within Rae's smirk. "W-wha?"

"Atticus, Luke and Sora made it through but no immunity!" chirped Nihilego's barely audible voice through the intercom, moaning between words.

Rae grinned as she traced a claw on the wooden chest, wiping off a speck of dust. "Well… this looks old. Wow… the hosts didn't have the initiative to even wipe of the dust." She stuck out her tongue at the falled Octilleries. "You lost again, suckers!" With a triumphant giggle, Rae flew into another hallway.

Alex smacked the ground next to him in anger. "Am I getting weak? I got beaten by Crimson, Sari and now, Rae!"

Poppy giggled, face still lying against the ground. She lifted her face from the ground, flashing a toothy grin. "This has been one eventful day!"

"Favian and Jack made it through. Only six more from the Noctowls are needed."

"Okay… we're screwed," commented Icy.

 **000**

 **Alex: *head buried under his hands* I'm feeling weak… emotionally and physically. I'm not sure if I can survive another elimination.**

 **000**

Juvia and Izaya flew into Shrek's chamber. Juvia quickly noticed Ashley, who was groaning in pain as she laid on the floor. The gambling duo flew to her in concern.

"Ashley, this is no time to sleep," chided Juvia cluelessly.

"Juvia, she was in a fight," corrected Izaya with a lighthearted chuckle. "It looks like she lost…" He tapped the Whimsicott's arm, waiting for a reaction.

Ashley blinked slowly. "Ooof! Atticus, Luke and Sora are savages!" Ashley looked up, noticing the gambling couple hovering above her. "Juvia? Izaya? Have you seen Ace and the others? They left me."

"Well… we're just gonna give the Ursaring his candy," chirped Juvia cheerily. Juvia tilted her head. "Do you wanna join us? We're on the same team after all."

Izaya nodded, tipping his fedora politely. "I think we could. It would be a lot more effective if we let Ashley join."

Ashley sighed in relief. "Thanks. Maybe it could also earn us immunity!"

Juvia nodded vigorously. "It will! Though… only five of us made it through. We're way far behind." Her eyes glistened innocently. "But we did get to explore a maze! And Izzy invited me to Vivian!"

Ashley can't help but giggle. "That sounds very… cute when you say it."

Izaya chuckled. "That's why I love her."

* * *

Meowzer was crouched over a pool of blood… her blood. She was coughing up blood ever since she saw Azure being strangled. Meowzer continued to hold her stomach in disgust but a smile forced its way onto her face.

She suddenly frowned. Why was she smiling? She eyed her left arm. It was trembling uncontrollably. A voice from the corner of the Meowstic's mind then spoke to her. " _Push. Stab. Strangle. Blungeon. You haven't did anything yet. How boring. You're clinically insane. You killed your therapist already. You can kill someone here too. Probably the Comfey, right? Meowzer Meowzer Meowzer… or should I say Melody? You can't make it through this season without dirtying your hands with blood. Helping Jester would be the beginning of your downspiral development._ "

Meowzer held her head as it began to throb. "No… I can't… I'm… sane… r-right?"

"Meowzer, is that you?" queried a dry and nasal voice from behind the Meowstic.

Meowzer turned around, finding Breon with a smug expression. Standing next to the Vikavolt was Clay and Kaiser. Kaiser looked annoyed while Clay waved sheepishly at the Meowstic.

"You looked… troubled," commented Breon dryly. Breon cringed as he noticed the fresh pool of blood, where the Meowstic was crouched over. "What's with the blood?"

Meowzer slowly stood up with a horrified expression. "It's mine…" Her expression darkened as her arms were shaking violently. "Stay away from me… I'm untamed… an untamed monster that deserves to be caged."

Clay approached the Meowstic, tilting his head in confusion. "Meowzer… you look pale." Clay held his everstone necklace in concern, fingers slightly fidgety. He paled a bit. "Sorry… I'm not used to psychic types… I have… a fear of them."

Meowzer instinctively smacked Clay's hand from his necklace, eyes welling up with tears. "Sorry…" She hastily ran away from the scene, mumbling incoherently.

Clay blinked as he held his chest. "W-what…" Tears then began to flow out his eyes. "My… my everstone… it's…" Clay paused, choking on his tears. "It's gone." He finished softly.

Kaiser growled, gritting his teeth. "That psychic… she took it!"

"Awwww, you care for Clay," cooed Breon with a smug smirk.

"Shaddup," grumbled Kaiser, rolling his eyes.

"Ashley, Izaya and Juvia made it through. 8 Octilleries have immunity so only two immunities remain!" uttered Nihilego's voice silently through the intercom.

Clay blinked in disbelief. "My… everstone… my master would disown me if I evolved…"

Breon patted his back consolingly. "Don't worry, dude! It's not like you'll ever evolve. You're a pacifist!"

Kaiser forced a grin. "Yeah… what he said." Kaiser hid a symphatetic grin. He felt sorry for the Timburr but he can't show sadness. That would signify weakness in Kaiser's opinion. Kaiser sighed gruffly.

"EVERYONE! Poppy and Junior have the last two immunities for the Octilleries but ummm… we have to end the challenge… something came up. Favian pointed it out so thank him for this. The Noctowls win… ugh! We have a lot of paperwork because of this." Nihilego's voice slowly quieted down to a murmur before nothing can be heard.

Kaiser frowned. "We lost… for the third time in a row?! This fucking sucks!"

A wormhole appeared on the ceiling above the trio and they were then all sucked into the wormhole.

 **000**

 **Meowzer: *eyes widening* Oh no… I lost Clay's everstone! I was going to return it to him… I got carried away. My inner demons are still roaring inside of me… and I can't make them stop…**

 **000**

 **Serall: *frowns, holding a stone* I was just walking around the maze when… I found this! Looks useless… meh, I'll just flush it down the toilet.**

 **000**

The two teams stood in front of Nihilego, who was clasping her tentacles nervously. Noticeably, Azure and Sari were both missing.

"Sooo what happened?" Poppy questioned, sketching something on her sketch pad. "You ended the challenge prematurely after my group rang the bell."

Maya nodded, though she seemed relieved. "Well… Darren and I got lost… so I'm thankful that we won."

"Ha! Sand is better after all!" scoffed Otis, groping a handful of sand.

"Shut it, noob!" scowled Maya with a nonchalant expression. "Sand is just sand. Nothing special."

Jack chuckled smugly. "Otis is boned!"

Favian cleared his throat nervously. "This tension is quite… alarming. Otis and Maya, continue your argument after Nihilego explaims."

Nihiego nodded with a smirk. "Well… Sari attempted to sue Shrek… Shrek can't be sued sooo Sari… umm… partially destroyed the medical building… aside from that, Azure is… in critical condition… but because of the contract, she can't leave."

Poppy scowled at the Noctowls. "That's the Noctowls' fault! They only cared about winning!" She then blinked in disbelief. "Wait… Favian told you about Azure… but that was… way after Azure left the maze."

"I only noticed two hours after," explained Brianna indifferently.

"You Noctowls, are heartless," muttered Icy with a grim expression.

Nihilego cleared her throat. "Ummm… this is awkward but… this challenge was… a bit… violent… a lot of catfights sooo… umm… the elimination ceremony would begin in two hours. Do your stuff before then. The first ten Noctowls still have their immunity for their next elimination while the first ten Octilleries are immune for this elimination ceremony." Nihilego snapped her tentacle, creating a wormhole above her. With a smile, she floated towards it, disappearing through it.

Favian blinked in disbelief. "Wow…"

 **000**

 **Alex: *sighs* We lost… I should vote with Randall… might help me…**

 **000**

 **Clay: *crying* My everstone… Meowzer stole it! She's a monster!**

 **000**

Azure laid on a hospital bed, left eye welling up with tears. She was inside the medical clinic. Sari was sitting on the bed beside hers with a horrific scowl. There was a table next to the door. On it were jars of cotton balls, syringes and lollipops. Noticeably, she was bigger. She also had arms now and her ears were bigger. She evolved to a Marill. Azure's right side of her face was covered with bandages. She gripped her notebook tightly as she muttered incoherently to herself.

"Azure! You're awake!" chimed in a chipper voice.

Azure hissed defensively as Poppy entered the clinic. "Stay away! You're nor L-Leader Brianna!"

"Ha! Brianna doesn't care for you at all!" scoffed Sari, leaning against the wall with an annoyed expression.

Poppy frowned at the the Salazzle as she sat by the Marill's bed. "Don't be mean! I went out of my way to visit you!" She pouted, taking out a handful of candies. "I brought candies!"

Azure paled at the sight of the candies on Poppy's flipper. "Poppy… I choked on candies… I'm still… traumatized…"

Poppy sighed apologetically, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "Sorry. Didn't know. Though… I just wanna let you know that Brianna doesn't care about you at all."

"That's what I've been telling her but she doesn't listen!" huffed Sari, hands on her hips.

Azure shook her head. "Brianna… is good! She's my leader after all!"

"She's a bad leader," drawled Sari, crossing her arms. "I'm tempted to kill her first."

Azure pouted with an expression of denial. "No! I don't believe you! I'll do my best to impress her!" Azure frowned as she closed her eye. "Don't say otherwise… good night!"

Poppy frowned before turning to leave the clinic.

* * *

Serall frowned as he carried a bag of candies near the medical clinic on the other side of the island. He collected every cand that he could find because Quentin told him so… but his team still lost. Sari was safe for another day. He can't have revenge…

 **CRASH**

Serall grunted as another contestant bumped into him.

Poppy rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Serall! Sorry that I bumped into you. I just visited Azure!" She then noticed the large bag that the Kommo-o was carrying. "Are you Santa Claus' replacement or something?"

"It's nothing," grumbled Serall, eyes darting around the area nervously.

Poppy giggled, clutching to her sketch pad. "Well… nothing is such a heavy thing that you have to carry with a bag, right?"

Serall groaned, annoyed by the Brionne's persistent behavior. "Just leave. This doesn't involve you."

"Kay." was Poppy's reply as she walked away with a creepy giggle.

 **000**

 **Poppy: I saw the candies inside the bag! Oh my! Serall must be a pedophile, using candies to lure the poor children! *shakes her head* Nah! Serall cheated and failed. *folds her flippers* I'm not that dumb!**

 **000**

Izaya knocked on the door to Vivian's lair under the docks. Behind him was Juvia, who was looking around in her natural confusion.

Seconds after, the Roserade opened the door with an irritate expression. "Who dares interrupy Chaos' evil plans?" Vivian's face softened as she realized who was knocking. "Izaya! I didn't expect that you'll visit again!" She turned to Juvia with a wide smile. "You must be Juvia! Izaya really loves you so much! The name's Ch- I mean, Vivian!"

Juvia giggled playfully. "Izaya told me about you. You sound like a nice guy."

Vivian blushed, face turning redder than a red beet. "I'm evil! M-my name is C-Chaos!"

Izaya chuckled, flying into Vivian's lair, sitting down on a chair by the table. "Don't believe her. She helped Meowzr during the ring challenge."

Juvia floated into the lair, examining it in awe. "Wow! It looks cozy!"

Vivian blushed in emabarrassment. "Muahahahaha! I clean it every day…"

"That sounds nice," commented Juvia, sitting next to Izaya. She then noticed the fizzling beakers on the table. "Ooh! What's these glasses for? They have a different shape!"

"Those are beakers, Juvia," explained Izaya.

"Muahahahaha! It contains my secret concoctions! Candy-flavored water cuz wynaut?" shrugged Vivian.

"She seems like a nice girl, Izzy! I really like her." Juvia whispered to Izaya with a giggle.

Izaya grinned. "I knew you would." He sighed happily. "I… am quite… endeared by both of you."

Juvia giggled. "Same!"

Vivian blushed as she heard the gamblers' conversation.

 **000**

 **Izaya: I love Juvia very much! *chuckles* I find it cute that Juvia likes Vivian too. Vivian is quite a decent person, unlike the other scumbags on this island.**

 **000**

Maya drummed up her fingers on the table in impatience. She was waiting for Otis in the dining room of the Winners' Villa. Darren suggested a debate earlier but the Stoutland was still nowhere to be found. Favian yawned as he sat between Darren and Lance.

"Can I go now? I must fight crime elsewhere!" Lance intoned, yawning in boredom. "Otis might have forgotten about the heroic debate!"

"I doubt it. He loves sand so much! He would want to defend it too," pointed out Maya, rolling her eyes.

"His dirt… umm beach… errr sand addiction is quite disturbing," commented Favian with a frown.

"Don't disrespect his beliefs." Darren said with a weak smile. "He might love sand for a reason! He's might be nice if you get past his sand fetish." He frowned, snapping his fingers. "I can relate. His sand is the same to music for me."

"You want to fornicate with heroic music?" questioned Lance, furrowing a brow in confusion.

"We just share a burning passion," chuckled Darren sheepishly.

"Me and my sand have arrived!" came a solemn voice. Maya scowled as she heard this.

Darren smiled. "It looks like Otis has arrived."

* * *

Alex sighed as he sat on his bed with worry riddled in his eyes. Randall, who was sitting on another bed, took notice of th **is.**

"You okay, dude?" Randall questioned the Alex with a concerned expression. Randall was still awkward with the Sceptile since they used to be petty rivals.

"I think Crimson and her friends would vote me off," said Alex, hands resting on his lap. "I have little to no chance in surviving the elimination ceremony. I think I annoyed her too much during the challenge."

"Why don't we vote off Comf?" suggested Randall consolingly. "She's quite weak… and she never did anything after Septh left. She's vulnerable now that Sophia left."

Alex thought about it for a while before nodding. "That sounds legit. We vote off Comf!"

 **000**

 **Randall: Being friends with Alex is weird…**

 **000**

Crimson was meditating in the middle of the woods. Squatting in front of her were Ashley and Icy.

"So, who do we vote off this time?" Ic asked, closing her eyes in contempt.

"Alex." Crimson said firmly. "I want him gone. Not Metilda. Not Comf. Alex. He is annoying me to no end. This challenge was the last straw."

"Is this a good idea?" Ashley queried. "Shouldn't we weed off the weaklings first like Comf and Jester? Or we can vote off Juvia. She won a season already."

Crimson shook her head. "We can do that after today's elimination ceremony. For now, we'll vote for Alex."

"Are you thinking straight or are your emotions getting in the way?" snarked Icy with a smug smirk.

"Shut up!" blustered Crimson, opening her eyes in irritation. "We had nothing between us! I just want him gone! Nothing more, nothing less."

"Hehehehehe. Denial," drawled Icy, rolling her eyes.

"I thought that you were the shy girl." Crimson pointed out, crossing her arms.

"I'm playing hardball now," shrugged Icy.

"Well… vote off Alex. That's final!" Crimson finalized, standing up.

Ashley sighed in defeat. "There's no use in changing your mind. Alex it is, then. If this screws us, I'll blame you."

Crimson rolled her eyes. "Shut up."

Unbeknownst to the three girls, someone was watching.

* * *

Quentin turned to Ruby with a smirk. "We vote off Alex now. This is how you play the game, Ruby. I'm so great at this, am I?" He yawned, covering his nose. "I'm surprised that they didn't notice your smell. It's dreadful."

Ruby quietly snarled at the Sylveon. "I'm your ally! You shouldn't just blatantly point that out. I know that I smell, okay!"

Quentin chuckled sheepishly in an attempt to pretend that he doesn't know that Ruby knows of his facade. But boy is his acting bad! He was quite relieved that someone knows so he purposely made his acting transparent… but only if he's alone with Ruby.

"I'll tell Serall later! Vote for Alex, kay?!" Quentin uttered with a tired expression.

Ruby nodded.

"Okay! I can rest easy! I feel like Atticus!" snickered Quentin, walking off with a chuckle. He stuck out his tongue at the Skuntank. "Seeya, smelly!"

* * *

Nightfall came and the Octilleries all sat around the blazing campfire. Nihilego grinned at the twenty two campers, holding a tray of poffins in her tentacle.

"Oh goody! We can finally get this over with! If I say your name, come forward and get your Poffin. The one with the most votes is elimenated and won't return ever!"

Jester and Alex gulped nervously.

 **000**

 **Crimson: Bye bye Alex! It was not nice to see you!**

 **000**

 **Alex: I hope this works. I vote for Comf! She's the weakest link on this team so it's natural if she goes.**

 **000**

 **Clay: *growls, gritting his teeth* I vote for Meowzer. She's a kleptomaniac psychotic son of a bitch! My master… won't like me now…**

 **000**

 **Poppy: *shows a strip of paper with Serall's name on it* Seeya Serall! You're so bad at lying and I'm pretty sure that you are a bad egg!**

 **000**

"Immune for this round only are Randall, Ruby, Quentin, Ace, Evelyn, Juvia, Izaya, Ashley, Poppy and Junior." Nihilego announced, hurling poffins at the aforementioned Octlleries.

Twelve Octilleries remained poffin-less.

"The next group of campers safe for now are… Luther, Icy and Kaiser." continued Nihilego.

Icy floated forward, grabbing two Poffins firmly. She threw one poffin at the Trubbish befoe gobbling up her own poffin while returning to her seat. Kaiser followed her, taking his poffin with a grunt, eating it with one gulp. The Hydreigon flashed a symphathetic look at Clay before returning to a scowl.

"Breon, Clay and Crimson are safe with no votes too!"

Breon and Clay went forward to get their poffins. Crimson rolled her eyes, crossing her arms.

"Metilda and Jester are the last two with no votes." Nihilego hurled poffins at the Bisharp and Treeko.

Alex, Comf, Meowzer and Serall remained.

Alex's feet were shuffling nervously as the Sceptile twiddled his fingers, whistling nervously.

Comf just scoffed, rolling her eyes. She was used to being at the bottom.

Meowzer was shaking violently, eyes darting around the area franticly.

Serall frowned, crossing his arms. Why would anyone vote for him? He was the best physically. He was an athlete!

"The next person safe is…"

…

…

…

…

…

"Serall."

The Kommo-o catched his poffin with a triumphant smirk."I see that I'm still very much needed by this group!"

"The next person safe is…"

Izaya yawned, smiling at Juvia.

…

Alex eyed the poffin tray wistfully.

…

Meowzer lets out a wheezing cough, which unnerves Luther.

…

"Meowzer"

Meowzer held her head as the poffin landed on her lap. She trembled nervously. "N-no… w-why?!"

Jester gave her a look of concern before looking away.

Alex and Comf both remained.

"W-what?" Alex look surprised as he exchanged a nervous glance with Comf, who was strangely calm.

"Meh. It became underwhelming after one time," yawned Comf tiredly.

"And the person leaving tonight is…"

…

Alex gulped, twiddling his fingers nervously. This expression was rare to see in the Sceptile, who was usually calm and cocky.

…

Comf was stony-faced. She didn't mind leaving. Besides, she can't make friends anyway.

…

Quentin's ribbons swayed against the breeze violently as the Sylveon had an innocent look.

…

Crimson clenched a fist. It was time.

…

"Alex."

Alex's eyes widened. "W-what? But how? I can't be that disliked!"

"You had nine votes," explained Nihilego, clasping her tentacles. "It's time for you to go."

000

 **Alex: Damn! I made it far last time and now, I'm third boot! This sucks! Comf was third boot last time… we were close to making her leave third again…**

 ***sighs* Well… I want Randall to win. *blushes* He's a good player. Other than him, Ace maybe? He was the one wheeling me last season when I was in a full body cast soo yeah!**

 ***waves* This is where my story ends but this is where others' stories would begin.**

 **000**

 **Crimson: *guiltily* I don't feel good… I had Evelyn, Comf and Kaiser to vote with me… I feel shitty. Wasn't revenge supoosed to taste good?**

 ***sighs* All I have is a bitter taste in my mouth…**

 **000**

"And that is why sand is elegant!" concluded Otis with a nonchalant expression.

Lance wiped off a stray tear from his eye. "That. Was. Beautiful. Otis, you're the clear winner of this debate!"

Maya blinked in confusion. "B-but! He was redundant with his reasoning! I had better arguments!"

"His statement… was appealing," admitted Favian, stifling a chuckle. "Makes me appreciate the true wonders of sand and whatnot."

Darren sighed, giving the Gardevoir a consoling look. "Maya-"

"I demand a rematch!" enthused Maya, startling Darren.

Otis chuckled. "You just want to lose again." He nodded with a smirk. "I accept. I'll win again of course!"

Favian blinked in disbelief. "What?!"

 **000**

 **Otis: Maya is a hater of my sand! My sand is accepting so I'll debate against her until she fully understands the concept of sand!**

 **000**

Alex sighed as he walked down the docks, head hung low. Hazel stood near the end of the docks, fiddling with a button.

"Sooo what's ny sendoff?" Alex asked the Fennekin, crossing his arms.

Before Hazel could speak, a feminine voice spoke up, "Wait!"

Alex furrowed a brow as Crimson ran towards him, sweating nervously. Crimson's eyes were averted from the Sceptile. "Hey Alex… I'm here to… say sorry." Crimson sighed with a shudder. "I shouldn't have let my emotions cloud my judgement." She blushed, eyes meeting the Sceptile's. "Maybe… I still have some feelings."

Alex was stony-faced to this. "Crimson… stop it. I don't want to talk to you again…" Alex blushed. "I have… some other interests."

Crimson blinked in disbelief. "W-what?! What do you mean with other interest?!"

"I have a- AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Alex was kicked off the island by a gigantic boot.

Crimson sighed, sneering at the Fennekin. "What was that for?!"

Hazel didn't notice the Lucario as he stared at the water in awe. "That boot appeared out of nowhere. Must be because of my magical presence!"

Crimson sighed, rolling her eyes before walking away from the docks.

She turned one last time towards the water before speeding away.

"..."

* * *

 **And the chapter is over!**

 **000**

 **46th Alex (The Lonely Survivalist)**

 **Alex is gone! His only story for this season was Crimson so he had to go early. I never planned for hin to make it past episode five so this is where he left.**

 **That aside, Azure lost an eye and is in a state of denial. Poppy finds out about Serall's obvious cheating. Ruby and Quentin alliance. What would happen nezt? Welp, wait for next chapter then.**

 **This is the longest chapter I ever wrote as of now sooo yeah!**

 **Alex: Review… I need some time alone...**


	5. No Rest For the Just

**Nihilego: Hello everyone! It is time for another chapter! I hope that you enjoy~ This chapter is a breather so it's relatively short.**

 **A/N: Thanks for the advice, Honesty and Magnemitegeek. I'll try hard to slow down with the pacing. Oh! Also, I'm gonna use paragraph form for the confessionals now to be more descriptive.**

 **000**

 **OBJECTION!**

 **000**

 _"The cold nights have never been colder."_

Comf sighed as she sat on the steps, gripping to a cup of coffee with a tired expression.

 _"Deaths have never been lighter."_

Walter sighed as he laid on his bed, thinking about Brianna and her poor leadership with a shudder.

 _"What matters most is that nothing matters at all."_

Kaiser frowned bitterly to himself as he walked on the beach. He noticed a nearby island in the distance.

 _"What was once lost will be found."_

Rae clenched a fist as she eyed a piece of crumbled paper inside the nearby trash can.

 _"What was once beating is now barren and cold."_

Clay kicked a pebble, eyes distorted and confused.

 _"What a dreadful world this is…"_

 **-000-**

Poppy looked up from her sketch pad with a grin. She was seated inside the mess hall across Evelyn and Juvia. The Shuppet smiled at her while the Liligant yawned, uninterested.

"Sooo how was that? I wrote it after Septh left. It was inspired by Septh and Comf's dying relationship. It's not completed yet but it's a tragedy." Poppy intoned, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "Any constructive criticism that you may give me? Do I have to change it up?"

Evelyn shrugged with a nonchalant expression. "I honestly don't care. You basically dragged me here with no specific reason." She yawned stiffly. "Can I leave now? I need to rest my head."

"You were resting before I dragged you here." Poppy pointed out with a creepy grin. "You'll just have to bear with me!" She then frowned. "Besides, we've been here for only five minutes."

"Maybe, Poppy's tragedy might inspire you!" Juvia chirped innocently to the Liligant, who was now slumped on her chair with a bored expression. "Is that right, Evelyn?"

"My life is already a tragedy," mumbled Evelyn nonchalantly. She face-planted onto the table. "This table… lacks… inspiration." Evelyn lifted her face from the table with a grunt. "Poppy… it's way past midnight already." The Liligant gestured to a window, revealing the outside area of the mess hall… at night. "I need to rest."

Poppy pouted at the Liligant, crossing her flippers cheekily. "Evel-... umm… I'll call you Eve! Eeeeeve, pleeeease stay! I need commentary."

"Don't call me Eve," muttered Evelyn, rolling her eyes. She slowly stood up, bowing politely. "I must now go or whatever. Good luck with your yaoi?" Evelyn then nonchalantly walked out of the mess hall.

Juvia blinked curiously, turning to the Brionne. "Do you think she'll go back to the cabin… or will she go to woods for special business?" Juvia giggled innocently. "I bet she's secretly a softie… just like Izzy." She blushed. "I love Izzy!"

Poppy giggled creepily, setting her sketch pad on the table. "It's a wonder that you're not yet tired, Juvia! Must be because of your ghostly abilities!"

Juvia sighed somberly. "I fake sleeping sometimes… to know how it feels." She flashed an optimistic grin. "But I'll try all over and over again until I finally fall asleep!"

"Well… I hope you fall asleep sometime," said Poppy with a weak grin.

Juvia smiled at the Brionne but they were interrupted by a hard thud.

"Curse you, lack of depth perception!" A childish voice chimed in.

Poppy and Juvia both turned to the end of the table, where Azure was slumped over with bloated cheeks. Some thick bandages covered the right side of her face.

"Yaoi shipper? Cloth champion? Is that you?" whimpered Azure with a frown. "I cannot see from here due to the lack of… sight organs…" Azure rotated her head towards the duo, sighing in relief. "Ah! I can now see you two! I thought that I was talking to myself."

Poppy furrowed a brow. "I'm surprised that you're still awake. Shouldn't you be resting?" She frowned. "Or are you searching for your 'Leader' Brianna?"

Azure frowning, shaking her head. "I cannot sleep… I keep having nightmares… I'm just searching for anyone awake to help me!"

"Sadly, I can't help you." Juvia stated with a weak smile. "I don't sleep after all."

Poppy forced a grin. "Well… must cuz of your sucking up to Brianna." She chuckled bitterly, facial expressions turning more fierce and threatening. "What do you even see in her? She's nothing but a… bad egg!"

Azure frowned, eyes glistening with hatred. "I… I have no…" She silently growled at the Brionne, blushing madly. "I have no choice okay!"

Poppy gestured for the Marill to come closer. As the Marill wobbled next to her, Poppy held her hand gently. "You had a lot of choices. You're making yourself look like Clay… no offense to him."

"What else can I do?" whimpered Azure, tears gushing out of her eyes. "I… have no one." She slowly wiped off the tears off her eyes with a scowl. "I'm… just going to leave."

Azure gave Poppy a expressionless look before padding out of the mess hall.

 **000**

 **"I don't get Azure… what is her goal? I'm quite confused…" muttered Poppy, rubbing the back of her head in confusion. She shook her head with a weak grin. "No time to think bout that! Yaoi is awriting!"**

 **000**

Crimson stood near the girls' cabin with a regretful expression. She was standing there for nearly an hour now. She was thinking about Alex's departure. Perhaps… it wasn't a good idea.

She balled her fists, mind flooded with thoughts. "What… now? Alex is now gone… I feel like… I have lost all of my purpose to be in this game…"

"Crimson! I see that you're still awake," came a charismatic voice from behind her.

The Lucario turned around, finding herself staring at Quentin, whose ribbons were gripping to a mug of coffee and a plate of waffles.

Quentin smiled at the Lucario. "Do you want some waffles? You look famished, standing here for a long time." He smiled, handing the Lucario a plate of waffles that were swimming in a pool of chocolate syrup. "Sorry about the syrup. I went too far with that."

Crimson smiled, accepting the plate. "It's okay. I appreciate the kind gesture." Sighing, she sat on the steps to the cabin. Quentin sat next to him, whistling innocently.

"Well… I didn't know you and Alex had history before." Quentin commented with a grin. "Sooooo… you feeling okay?"

Crimson frowned, forking her plate of waffles. "I feel strange inside…" She groaned. "I hope this doesn't bite me in the butt."

Quentin passed her a symphathetic expression. "Don't worry. Win or lose… at least you tried right?"

Crimson laughed sarcastically. "Are you kidding me?! I want to win this and be remembered! I stayed under the radar last season… and I think no one remembers me too much. Winning would do wonders for me!"

"Well… enjoy the waffles," said Quentin, yawning between words. "I'll be sleeping now… I'm feeling tired already." He smiled at the Lucario, cocking his head as if he was tipping a hat. "I bid you goodnight."

Crimson sighed as the Sylveon walked away, not even looking back at her.

 **000**

 **"I feel like I could trust Quentin… he seems nice," commented Crimson with a small smile.**

 **000**

 **Quentin yawned tiredly. "Sucking up… now I know why Azure sucks up to Brianna… extra vote… but I'm smarter. I won't act too desperate like Azure…"**

 **000**

 **THE NEXT DAY**

 **000**

The sun began to rise in the distance. A figure sped past through the trees, making its way to the infirmary.

The figure turned around cautiously, examining if anyone was following it. The figure then continued its path to the infirmary.

As it was about to enter the infirmary, sunlight was directed at the figure's head, revealing… intimidating and crazy eyes. The figure quickly covered its eyes instinctively.

"EVERYONE, PLEASE HEAD TO THE FLAGPOLE!" came Nihilego's voice through the intercom, a hint of worry coating her tone. "ERRR… I HAVE AN… ANNOUNCEMENT…"

The figure frowning, cursing to itself. It quickly padded away from the infirmary, a small piece of paper neatly dropped to the ground.

In the distance, the sun finally rose. It was officially morning.

 **-000-**

The campers, barring Sari, were all now standing in front of Guzzlord near the flagpole. The glutton had a worried expression on his face. Most of the campers were still fatigued from the last challenge. Azure leaned against Brianna for support, who frowned in disgust.

"Ummm… where's Nihilego?" Jester queried with a worried expression. "Did something bad happen to her?"

"Errr… Sari sued her… so she's going to court… against Sari," explained Guzzlord, sweating nervously. "Umm… the problem is she has… no lawyers." He flashed an optimistic grin. "Thankfully, Sari doesn't have a law-" He groaned pessimistically, gesturing to Quentin. "Quentin… Sari asked you to be her lawyer."

Quentin yawned with a shrug. "I honestly don't mind."

"Okay… who wants to be Nihilego's lawyer?" Guzzlord asked the contestants. "There'll be no challenge for today because of that."

Maya's hand shot up. "I volunteer!" Maya had a cocky smile on her face.

"You lost against Otis, gamer." Jack pointed out with a nonchalant expression.

Maya's face flushed in embarrassment. Darren gave the Gardevoir a gentle pat on the back.

"I hate to interrupt but… I think Ruby can be Nihilego's lawyer," suggested Quentin, hiding a smirk.

"What are you trying to do?!" Ruby whispered to the Sylveon in disbelief.

"Hehehehehe. Nothing," chuckled Quentin.

"Quentin. Ruby. Come with me please," requested Guzzlord as a wormhole took form behind him.

Quentin yawned, walking forward while Ruby followed with an irked expression. Guzzlord smiled, walking into the wormhole. Quentin and Ruby followed. The wormhole vanished as Ruby entered the wormhole.

Favian blinked in confusion. "What do we do now?"

Ace shrugged. "Whatever we want. Strategize or rest or leisure. It' s up to you."

Raven nodded. "Yes! This would be the perfect time for me to form my cult!"

Juvia blinked in confusion. "What?"

 **000**

 **"Raven is quite… intriguing," admitted Juvia, cocking her head to the side. She shook her head with a grin. "I would just have to get used to his zaniness!"**

 **She giggled innocently. "Besides, I wanna hang out with Vivian and Izaya today."**

 **000**

 **Ah. This is one of the few moments where I enter this little nook. I stayed under the radar for a while already. I really need to step up my game." Favian intoned with a weak frown.**

 **000**

"Awwwww, you're busy." Juvia said to the Izaya innocently as they walked down the beach. The contestants were now all dispersed, doing their respective stuff.

The Crobat nodded. "I have some business to take care of." He blushed. "We have all day for this. You can go to Vivian on your own."

Juvia weakly smiled at Izaya. "I guess I can. I survived without you last season after you got eliminated… I can survive a day without you again!" She giggled playfully. "Though, sometimes I feel lonely."

"Don't worry… I will always find a way to protect you," assured Izaya with an unusual calm smile. The Crobat was usually nonchalant or threatening so this side of him was quite rare. He continued, "I trust Vivian… so you don't have to worry too much."

Juvia giggled. "If you trust her, I can trust her too! She was really nice to us when we visited yesterday."

Izaya tipped his fedora, turning around cooly. "I'll be off now. Be careful. Don't interact… with some of the others… I suspect something." Izaya shook his head. "Just head straight to Vivian's and nothing would go wrong."

Exhaling, the Crobat flew off to the woods. Juvia smiled, eyeing Izaya in awe until the Crobat was finally out of sight.

She then nodded to herself. "Time to go to Vivian!"

 **000**

 **"Randall. He asked for me to go to the other side of the island. He asked for me yesterday since… Alex left. I can infer that he's insecure that he's part of the minority group." Izaya revealed, eyes darting around the room suspiciously.**

 **000**

Clay grumbled as he stared at his plate of mush in anger. Sitting next to him was a worried Breon. The Vikavolt exchanged a worried glance with Luther. They were in the mess hall, having breakfast.

"Clay… you okay, dude?" Breon asked the Timburr, voice cracking a bit. "You seem… out of it."

Clay turned away from the Vikavolt, muttering incoherently to himself.

"I wish I can help you two but I… don't know what to do. I feel useless." Luther sighed.

As Breon was about to respond, footsteps can be heard approaching the table. A shadow casted over the trio. Clay covered his eyes with a hiss as the figure revealed itself to be Meowzer.

"C-Clay… I'm sorry about yesterday…" Meowzer said nervously. "I know that you're feeling sou-"

"HOW WOULD YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL, YOU PSYCHO?!" growled Clay, clenching a fist at the Meowstic.

Meowzer blinked, surprised by the Timburr's outburst. "C-Clay… I… am… clinically insane, okay."

"WHO CARES?! YOU'VE DONE THE DEED! MY MASTER WOULD DISOWN ME!" snarled Clay, expression darkening.

Drake then entered the mess hall with a nonchalant expression. As he noticed the ensuing argument, he casually walked out.

 **000**

 **Drake shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm in no place to interfere." He flashed a smirk. "Besides, I'll just be standing in the sidelines while they argue themselves out of the competition."**

 **000**

"I was unaware!" argued Meowzer, eyes welling with tears.

"AAAAAUUUUUUGGGHHH!" screeched Clay, gritting his teeth.

Luther quickly ducked under the table in fear of being caught in the crossfire.

Breon tried to pacify his friend. "Clay… it's not like you to be quickly mad. You're a pacifist, member?!"

Clay's judgement began clouded with his strong emotions as he replied, "FUCK OFF, BREON! THIS IS BETWEEN ME AND MEOWZER!"

Breon yelped, eyes bugging out in fear. "C-Clay… for a second, you remind me of myself…"

Meowzer whimpered as she weakened at Clay's glare. "Clay… you're…" Tears continued to gush out of the feline's eyes "If I cannot convince you… I'll…" Meowzer took a staggering step backward.

Giving the Timburr one last look, the Meowzer wobbled out of the mess hall.

"Good… she's gone," muttered Clay, calming down a bit.

"Is it o-over?" Luther asked, cowering under the table in fear.

Breon's face was frozen, mouth agape, trying to find words to answer Luther's question.

Clay opened his mouth to speak, his usual light-hearted voice replaced with a hoarse voice from all the screaming. "It… is not… over yet…"

Unbeknownst to them, a pair of eyes were watching them through a window.

 **000**

 **Luther is now curled up into a ball, cradling himself in an attempt to calm down. "Is everyone turning crazy? Even Icy felt different… this show is messing with nearly everyone's head!"**

 **000**

 **Serall chuckled triumphantly. "I think I have an idea! That stone I flushed… it was Clay's! I need to get it from the drain!" He shuddered, nose crinkling in disgust. "But… can we turn off the camera? I don't want to tarnish my title as professional athlete by flushing myself through the toilet!"**

 **000**

Ruby looked around in surprise as she found herself inside a courtroom. Quentin yawned in boredom. He seems to find the room familiar.

Guzzlord sighed as Nihilego approached him, clasping her tentacles in worry.

"Guzzy! Who did you bring with you?" Nihilego asked, eyes shifting to the side nervously.

"Ruby's your attorney while Quentin is Sari's." Guzzlord answered.

Quentin playfully saluted with his ribbons. "Hehehehehe. I'm ready!" He looked around curiously. "Where's the judge and the other required staff?"

Nihilego cleared her throat. "This trial would be managed by… the residing judg-"

Nihilego was interrupted by a quiet explosion. Smoke emerged from under the judge's podium, a gruff voice emanating from underneath. "I'm back!"

Ruby groaned in obvious displeasure. "Oh no…"

"Oh yes!" chuckled the voice as a figure rose from underneath the podium. Seconds after, a familiar Bastiodon came to view. "The camera loves me!" Sophia scowled. "Males should follow this example!"

"Wow. You chose a judge who's biased towards females." Quentin drawled, aware of Nihilego's intentions.

Nihilego rolled her eyes. "And also… I would like to introduce the jury: Septh and Alex, the other two eliminated contestants."

A Tyranitar entered the room, ushering Septh and Alex towards the seats designated for the jury. Septh and Alex both had somber expressions as they took their seats.

"Ummm… can I have some legal assistance?" Ruby requested with a frown. "I don't exactly have… experience with this kind of stuff."

"We already prepared for that!" said Nihilego as the doors opened once more to let a Fennekin and a Gumshoos enter the room.

Alex paled as he noticed the Gumshoos. "I thought that you kicked him off."

Donald chuckled gruffly. "Nihilego really loves me! She brought me back for more 'playtime'"

Nihilego winced at Donald's words. "Shut up! You're lucky that you're even on camera, bastard!"

Ruby groaned as she led Donald to her designated spot.

Quentin forced a smile as Hazel walked towards him, tail swishing merrily as he waved a twig. "So… what's with the twig?"

"It's not a twig! It has a name after all!" Hazel scoffed in disbelief. "Its name is Alexander the Sixth!"

"What happened to the other five?" queried Quentin nonchalantly.

"They… all passed." Hazel answered with a frown. Hazel then pointed to the heavens rebelliously. "But! Thanks to some resurrection spells and a friend! I brought him back! This is the sixth reincarnation!"

"Buy a new wand, smart alec." Sophia scoffed as she nibbled on a toasty waffle. "And make sure that it's a female wand to keep you in check!"

Hazel frowned as he followed Quentin to their designated area. "Alexander is too precious to be replaced! We made magical miracles together!"

Quentin forced a grin as he nodded in agreement.

 **000**

 **Quentin frowned, ribbons swaying violently against the wind. "Hazel… is a strange one. I've seen many of his kind before… but I won't tell where."**

 **000**

 **"FUUUCK!" yelled Ruby, eyes bulging out of her eyesockets in disbelief. "Is Donald even going to help?! I'm pretty sure that he's going to hinder me!"**

 **000**

"I have a master plan. I'll win this trial and earn Nihilego's trust." Donald elaborated with a cocky smirk. "Then! She'll worship me! I'm a fucking president after all!"

000

Luke continued to pace around his room, thinking about apologizing to Sora for the events that transpired yesterday. His room resembled the other rooms but the color scheme was dark blue.

"I'm s-sorry, Sora. I'm sorry that I broke your l-leg," mumbled Luke, pacing around the room nervously. "I'm sorry that I gave you c-cancer?"

Luke let out a surprised caw as the door suddenly slammed shut. Atticus yawned as he walked into the room.

"What are-" started Luke but he was interrupted by Atticus' nonchalant chuckle.

"Oh. I now get Sora's attempt to make me laugh." Atticus drawled, face-planting onto the bed. Atticus lifted his face with a yawn. "Hi Luke…" He chuckled. "Thinking bout something?"

"I want to apologize to Sora." Luke explained, still confused by the Alolan Vulpix's presence. "Umm… can you please leave, b-bruh?"

"Personality quirks." Atticus mumbled, reaching for one of the pillows. He covered his face with the pillow, mumbling incoherently.

"Bruh! I need some time alone!" Luke yelled, facial expressions tense and rigid.

Atticus sat up, leaning against the pillow. "Luke… you can tell me. I'm perfectly trustworthy." He paused, yawning before continuing. "I'm not the betraying type, bird."

Luke blinked with a hesitant nod. "I already told you… I want to make amends with Sora. I got the feeling that she's mad at me."

"No shit, Sherlock" Atticus drawled, face devoid of any emotion.

"... who ate your emotions?" queried Luke with a small frown.

"Hahahahahaha!" Atticus laughed awkwardly in reply causing Luke to gape in confusion.

 **000**

 **"Atticus is weird…" commented Luke, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "On another note, I hope that I catch Sora in a good mood." Luke chuckled nervously. "I don't want her to strangle me to death, bruhs." Luke gulped, face paling as he said those words.**

 **000**

Serall exited the outhouse, body dripping with yellow liquid. He held a gray stone in triumph.

"I finally got it!" Serall yelled loudly in triumph.

"Got what?" came a gruff and deep voice.

Serall gaped as Kaiser approached him with a nonchalant expression. "Uh…"

Kaiser quickly noticed the rock that the scaly dragon was holding. "..."

"..."

"..."

"I have a rock fetish!" spat Serall nervously, sweating bullets. "I love to fornicate with rocks for fun!" He growled at the Hydreigon. "Don't judge me! A professional athlete like me needs a pasttime."

Kaiser decided to play along. "Good. I have a…" Kaiser quickly pulled a stick of grass from the ground. "Grass fetish! Feels good for my ass."

"..." Serall gaped in surprise by Kaiser's statement. "W-what?!" He cleared his throat, composing himself. "Rocks are better than grass!" He mentally face-palmed himself. He was not exactly the sharpest crayon in the box but he was trying but unfortunately, he didn't try enough.

Kaiser rolled his eyes, eyes now fixated at the Kommo-o's feet. A small puddle of yellow liquid was formed by the small drips of liquid that was covering the Kommo-o. He stifled a chuckle. "What did you drink?"

"It's umm… water with yellow food coloring!" lied Serall, blushing in embarrassment. "Professional athletes are the only ones who can drink it!"

Kaiser frowned, eyes sharpening into a glare. "Are you saying that you're better than me?" Just like that, Kaiser's temper flared up. "I'm inferior, yeah yeah! Move along!" He sighed. "Oh… sorry Serall. I just get triggered sometimes… I guess I had enough."

"Y-yeah… umm… have fun with your grass." Serall replied, shaking nervously.

"You too with your… rock," muttered Kaiser, awkwardly walking away.

 **000**

 **"Serall's rock is Clay's everstone." Kaiser said simply. "If I was a better person, I would've beat the shit out of Serall and give the stone back to Clay…" He frowned. "But Clay needs to grow a pair. And this stone 'theft' might be the time for that."**

 **000**

 **"Kaiser is frightening… he might be as strong as me!" remarked Serall, crossing his arms, right hand gripping on the everstone. "But since I successfully averted him, I can hide Clay's stupid stone now!"**

 **000**

Serall snickered as he exited the boys' cabin. He hid the rock under the pillows on his bed. Smart, right? And under the pillows it shall be for the rest of the game.

Serall huffed as a Liepard bumped his side. He turned towards the fellow contestant, clenching a fist. "HEY! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?! I'M A PROFESSIONAL ATHLETE SO I CAN MESS UP YOUR FACE!"

Violet rolled her eyes with a frown. "Don't mind me. I'm just a mindless slut." She drawled nonchalantly. "I'm just here to get into someone's pants so please leave me alone."

Serall blinked. "That… is the weirdest thing I've ever heard… then again, Kaiser has a grass fetish…"

"Just go… I have some boys to seduce cuz I'm a mindless slut." Violet said sarcastically, expression looking bored.

"Yeah yeah. Have fun," grunted Serall, padding away muttering to himself.

Violet sighed in relief. "Sheesh… I didn't think that would actually work." She frowned, eyes blinking slowly. "Hmm… he was hiding something… I could see it in his face. Arceus, he's so fucking shallow!" She smirked with a weak giggle. "I wonder what secrets could he be hiding." Her eyes bored into the walls of the boys' cabin as she giggled with interest. "Looks like he's hiding it inside the cabin~"

 **000**

 **Violet caressed the Everstone with a purr. "Serall, was it? You hid the rock in an obvious place. I could assume that this item is of interest… I would have to look into it later." She giggled. "I can annoy Serall using this! He seems like a very angry fellow. Hehehehehe."**

 **000**

"..."

"..."

"So… what now?" Nihilego queried as she sat with the jury. "I don't exactly have any knowledge on these type of things…"

Sophia smirked as she smacked the gavel on the podium. "We'll have a Sophia trial! A trial system created by yours truly."

Quentin frowned. "I haven't heard of that before."

"Well, you have to duke it out in a battle of wits and I would judge who had the better statement." Sophia explained.

"Well… that sounds simple enough," commented Ruby with a weak grin.

"Sooo… should I use magic to help us win this trial?" Hazel whispered to Quentin, paws gripping to his twig.

Quentin shook his head. "Nah. I'm here to battle Ruby." He snickered, sticking out his tongue. "Let's see if Smelly knows anything about this."

Ruby blushed in embarrassment. "I'm not that smelly!" She hastily turned to Donald. "Right?"

Donald shrugged with an indifferent expression. "On a scale of one to ten, maybe one hundred."

"Now you're just insensitive!" blustered Ruby.

Quentin quicky smacked the side of his wooden chair with his ribbons to silence everyone. Quentin cleared his throat. "Smelly, let's just start explaining the basic facts regarding the case."

Ruby nodded hesitantly as she slumped on her chair.

"Okay. My client, Sari, is suiing Nihilego because according to the Salazzle, Shrek broke her back. And since Shrek cannot be sued, she sued Nihilego instead." Quentin told Sophia with a calm expression.

"OBJECTION!" yelled Ruby with an unsure expression. "Shrek is innocent! He was required for the challenge so I assume that he didn't move from his spot."

"But, the crime occured in the chamber where Shrek was." pointed out Quentin, shaking his finger. "Soooo Shrek being the culprit is the mos possible."

"... but why did he attack Sari in the first place?" the Skuntank questioned with a sneer. "We need an actual motive! Shrek was only on the island for a day at the time."

"But, Sari triggered the fight." Quentin reminded. "So, Shrek retaliated by breaking the Salazzle's back."

"Then-"

"-it's Sari's fault." Donald attempted to take the credit from Ruby. "She was the one who started the whole dilemma."

"Still, Shrek still commited the crime," rebuted Quentin.

"Errrr… I would like to call a witness!" blurted Ruby nervously as her eyes darted around the courtroom.

Sophia smacked her podium with the gavel. "Kay! The defense may call their witness but we'll have a ten minute recess… I'm famished!"

Quentin face-palmed. "This isn't the time for eating, your Honor."

"Whatever," scoffed Sophia, rolling her eyes. "Recess would now start now!" Sophia finished informally.

 **000**

 **"I think Sophia doesn't know how to oversee a trial," commented Quentin with a small frown. "Hmmm… I expect that Ruby's first witness is Shrek. She's that predictable." He snickered. "That's why I like to mess with her."**

 **000**

Junior sat quietly by the table in the mess hall, facing Poppy, who was writing down something on her sketch pad. The Incineroar was called to the mess hall by Poppy, who was quite concerned as she sat across the Incineroar.

Junior cleared his throat to get the Brionne's attention. "Ummm… Poppy, why did you call me here?"

The Brionne cleared her throat before replying, "I want to break up with you."

"..." Junior was speechless as he tried to process what Poppy said. "W-what?!"

"I feel that we won't work out. We're an on/off relationship and I'm not too loyal. I think you deserve better…" explained Poppy with a weak grin.

Junior sighed, nodding with a small frown. "I understand… I don't exactly see us working out…"

Poppy stood up, gripping her sketh pad. She nodded at Junior. "Well… I'm glad that you understand. Well… I must now take my leave." With a giggle, the Brionne wobbled out of the mess hall.

Junior sighed as he looked down in sadness.

 **000**

 **"I… did not actually expect this to happen." Junior admitted with a sigh. "Poppy is good at hiding her feelings so I didn't expect her to want to break up with me." Junior shook his head. "Well… it's time to move on…"**

 **000**

 **Poppy sighed in relief. "Thankfully, Junior didn't look too angry! I'm… writing a tragedy to signify the end of our relationship… not just about Comf and Septh." She giggled optimistically. "Well… I'm going to continue writing my new yaoi tragedy now!" She playfully stuck out her tongue. "Ciao~"**

 **000**

Most of the Noctowls were gathered inside the dining hall in the Winners' Lodge, doing their daily activities. Rae was muttering incoherently to herself as she held a crumpled piece of paper with her right hand. Raven was stabbing his plate of mush repeatedly with a sadistic smile. Jack watched him with a shudder while Trevor chuckled. Darren was attempting to comfort a depressed Maya. And finally, Favian was casually eating a plate of waffles.

Raven quickly shoved the mush on his plate into his mouth with a smile. "LORD GIRATINA, I HAVE KILLED THE ENEMY MUSH!"

"You're weird…" commented Jack, flame dimming a bit. "We have better food here yet you chose to eat mush."

Trevor chuckled. "Don't question him. He must have a valid reason for this."

"JACK AND TREVOR, WANT TO ACCOMPANY ME TO THE WOODS FOR NO REASON IN PARTICULAR?!" requested Raven with a creepy grin.

"Meh. I don't want to go." Trevor admitted with a shrug.

"LAMP! IT'S UP TO YOU THEN!" enthused Raven, turning to Jack. He then quickly turned to Rae. "YOU TOO, DEMONIC WYVERN!"

Raven cackled as he then walked out of the dining hall, dropping his plate to the floor with a thud.

Favian frowned as he stabbed his plate of waffles. "That… was something."

Darren shrugged with a warm smile. "I'm sure it's no biggie."

"No biggie?! Should I go to the woods?!" Rae asked. "That was out of nowhere. This is Raven we're talking about. He's crazy."

"Well… it's your choice," said Darren as he turned back to Maya. "I would still have to comfort Maya. Poor girl is still shocked from yesterday…"

"Otis' argument was just too good," shrugged Favian.

 **000**

 **"Fine… I'll go the woods." Rae muttered, crossing her arms. "Raven is someone I don't want to hang out with but just to be sure…"**

 **000**

Raven was meditating in the middle of the woods. A crude chalk drawing of a circle surrounded him. His eyes were closed as he muttered incantations. He opened his eyes as Rae and Jack approached him.

Jack spoke first. "Sooo… why did you want me to go here?" His flame brightened. "If you're going to attack me, I'll b-burn you!"

"Don't instigate violence for no reason, Lamepent." Rae drawled nonchalantly.

Raven cackled creepily. The clouds all turned darker eerily. "I want you two for my cult!"

"C-cult?" Jack took a step backward, flame dimming with the clouds. "I don't want to!" He shuddered. "I'm not… exactly a fan of c-cults."

"But we're going to poison others, worship Giratina, offer sacrifice and destroy the world!" enthused Raven, eyes darkening. "It would be incredible!"

Rae frowned. "No…" She shuddered. "I don't want to…" She shot a pulse of blue matter at the Absol. The Giratinist fell to the ground, claws piercing into the dirt."Never again…" With a mutter, the Noivern flew off, leaving a dark mood in the air.

Jack sighed in relief. As he was about to leave, his side was bitten. Jack's eyes widened as Raven's teeth sunk into his corporeal body. His eyes were blood red.

"R-Raven, what are you doing?" Jack whimpered, wincing in pain.

Raven's claws too sunk into the Lampent's body. Jack lets out a shriek of pain.

Jack suddenly lost control of his body as he fell to the ground. "The fuck?! I didn't do anything and you're trying to kill me?!"

"Hehehehehe… my cult needs to built through violence," said Raven with a cackle. "Rae… and you… I sae you two as smartasses. Perfect for my cult! Then… you both want to leave… Rae may have left but I'm not going to let you leave…"

Flocks of Pidgey flew away the area, shrieking in fear as Jack's screams of pain emanated from within the woods.

 **-000-**

Shrek blinked as he now stood in the witness stand. Ruby eyed him warily. She felt that Quentin was laughing at her right now due to her incompetence.

"Sooo… what was I supposed to do?" Shrek questioned, rubbing the back of his head in confusion.

"Testify, oh lovely witness," cooed Quentin, tone smooth and calm. "We don't want to delay with the trial."

"I DIDN'T DO IT! IT WAS DONKEH!" spat Shrek nervously.

Ruby frowned. "Shrek… just tell us what you witnessed. Did you break Sari's back?"

Shrek snickered. "That sexy salamander? Pfffttt, she was a weakling. I easily struck her down!"

"Is that a confession?" Sophia asked the Ursaring, eyes boring into the Ursaring's.

Nihilego groaned as she slumped against her seat.

"Umm… I hit her but I don't think I broke her back," answered Shrek nervously. "I did nothing else!"

"Hmmm… you can't prove that. Did you even check the Salazzle's body?" queried Quentin suspiciously. "For all we know, you could be lying to save yourself."

"Shrek isn't lying. What would he lose lying like this?" Donald countered calmly. "Shrek is not the only person in the vicinity of the crime at that time. There were two others… PJ and Marina. I would know… I watched the episode online."

"Ahem. But neither of the two others laid a finger on the victim," retorted Quentin with a yawn. "Shrek was the only one who made physical contact with the victim."

Hazel nodded, flicking his 'wand'. "Even Alexander agrees with us! And my word is a thousand times more valid that yours."

Ruby growled, gritting her teeth. "What if they attacked Sari with a ranged attack. Marina had Bubblebeam while PJ has some electric moves… so they're not yet cleared of suspicion!"

"Ahem, Shrek can testify about the events when he attacked Sari… Shrek, what happened then?" Quentin attempted to get information from the Ursaring.

"Well… PJ was cowering behind Marina, who was blowing bubbles for some reason." Shrek recounted.

"Aha! Marina used Bubblebeam to break Sari's back!" deduced Ruby.

"Ruby Ruby Ruby. I expected more from you. How can you break someone's back with a barrage of mere bubbles?" Quentin retaliated calmly. "Marina only weakened Sari… but it was Shrek who broke her back."

"I want a new-"

Quentin shook his head, ribbons gripping onto a cellphone. "They're already here. PJ and Marina, please take the stand."

"B-but I'm not yet done with my testimony!" shouted Shrek, flustered.

A wormhole appeared above the Ursaring, sucking Shrek into it, disappearing as he passed through the wormhole.

"S-so… we have to stand there." A timid yet serious voice piped up.

A Pachirisu and Prinplup entered the courtroom. Ruby blinked in disbelief. Quentin was prepared for everything. PJ had a nervous expression while Marina's eyes darted around the room nervously. They walked towards the witness stand then stopped, facing the two 'lawyers' with nervous expressions.

"Soo… PJ and Marina, we need your testimonies on the event," said Quentin with a yawn.

"I know nothing." The Prinplup muttered.

"T-tell the truth. You attacked Sari with Bubblebeam and stole her candies… you didn't try to help her," pointed out PJ with a nervous expression. He jabbed Marina's beak with a paw nervously.

"Liar!" screeched Marina in disbelief. "I am a pacifist!"

"We have video footage." Nihilego said flatly. She slapped herself in irritation. "Dammit! I forgot about that… all of the footage are in my special place so get it and it can prove Shrek's innocence."

Sophia cleared her throat, smacking the side of the podium with the gavel. "I see that we have new evidence so the trial would reconvene after the special evidence is retrieved."

Marina frowned to this. "B-but… I did nothing!" She glared at the rodent standing next to her. "PJ, this is all your fault."

"Well… you're not the one who broke Sari's back but you still commited a misdeed," drawled Quentin with a yawn. He chuckled. "Either way, Smelly over there is toast."

"I'm not that smelly!" screamed Ruby, glaring daggers at the Eeveelution.

 **-000-**

Nihilego emerged from a wormhole which was on the ground near the maze. She looked around franticly. She quickly. hovered to a poorly built shed, conveniently hidden behind the maze. She took out a bottle of pills, ingesting one before grabbing the doorknob shakily.

The shed was quite derelict and looks like it was about to break but it contained the footage which Nihilego edited for the finished episode. She twisted the doorknob as the door slowly opened with a creak.

The inside of the shed was quite homely unlike the exterior. Against the wall was a bookshelf. Lined on the bookshelf were multiple books and articles about these shows. Next to the bookshelf was a cardboard box. The box was brimming with videotapes, which contained footage for the show. Against another wall was a small television with a videotape player. She uses this to view the videotapes. In the middle of the shed was low table. On the table was a doctor's note but its contents were blurred out with crude scribbles. Next to the note was a potted plant and some magazines.

Nihilego hastily floated to the box, taking out a few from it. She quickly droppped the videotapes gently in front of the television. She grabbed a random videotape, inserting it into the cartridge. The video footage started to play and Nihilego sat in front of the television in anticipation.

 **-000-**

 _Hazuki yawned as she entered the kitchen of the Winners' Lodge. She waved her twig in boredom as she walked towards the fridge._

 _As she opened the fridge, someone entered the kitchen quietly. It was Willow._

 _Willow giggled to herself as she made her way to the Delphox. She quickly bit Hazuki's tail. "Surprise!"_

 _"Eeep!" Hazuki yelped in pain as she glared at the Wormadam. "What was that for?!"_

 _"Don't be a partypooper, Hazuki. I'm going to help you find love!" Willow enthused with a grin._

 _Hazuki blinked in confusion before brandishing her twig at the bug. "Leave… you're creeping me out."_

 _Willow giggled nervously as the footage ended from there._

 **-000-**

Nihilego mumbled incoherently to herself as she removed the video tape from the cartridge.

"This is footage between episodes…" Nihilego muttered as she inserted another videotape.

The television showed static before arriving to the footage.

 **-000-**

 _The footage was from the infirmary. Sari was lying down on a stretcher, grumbling to herself in frustration. Azure was tossing and turning as she slept._

 _Sari cringed as a pillow fell off the Marill's bed. "Azure! Stop dropping your pillows! My back is still aching so I can't pick it up…"_

 _"I'm sorry mom…" Azure muttered turning away from the salamander._

 _"... this is going to suck. I can't sleep because of this dunce… I have a trial tomorrow! Time to kick that bear's butt legally." Sari muttered as she closed her eyes in an attempt to sleep._

 _The door slowly opened with a creak as a familiar Leafeon entered the building._

 _Sari forced her eyes open. "Is someone there?" She fired a Flamethrower towards the Leafeon._

 _Brianna quickly dodged it with a frown. "What the fuck was that for, Sari?! That's not how you treat your leader."_

 _"Why are you even here?" growled Sari, gritting her teeth. "Are you asking me to kill you… I'm tempted but my back is preventing me from doing that."_

 _"I'm just here to see Azure," muttered Brianna._

 _"You're using her… not like I care or anything but you're quite pathetic… just like that pathetic excuse of an athlete." Sari said with a psychotic glare._

 _Brianna frowned before turning around to exit the room._

 _Sari chuckled psychotically. "Weakling!"_

 **-000-**

"Wrong one," muttered Nihilego renoving the videotape, inserting another videotape.

"I hope this is the one… third time's the charm, right?" Nihilego whispered with a weak smile as the video began to play.

 **-000-**

 **Walter was alone in the dining hall. It was currently night time.**

 **He took a deep breath as he held a cup of coffee. The day was a disaster. Brianna ruined it. Walter frowned as he took a long sip of coffee.**

 **"She should be taken care of… she's not worthy to be a leader." Walter muttered to himself.**

 **He took another sip. Midway, he heard footsteps approaching. He nearly spit out the coffee in his mouth as a hand touched his shoulder. Turning around, he found Trevor with an agressive expression.**

 **"..." Walter didn't say anything as he gulped down the coffee in his mouth.**

 **"I'm in a mood to punch someone," was Trevor's words to the Whismur.**

 **Walter blinked in confusion, slightly nervous at the presence of the Scrafty. "W-what?"**

 **Trevor grinned as he cracked his knuckles. "It would only hurt a little… a lot!"**

 **Walter yelped as Trevor's fist collided with his face. The Scrafty was not in a good mood for some reasons unknown.**

 **As Trevor retracted his fist from the Whismur's face, he muttered, "Ugh… I'm so angry…"**

 **Whismur held his nose and was at the verge of tears as the hoodlum silently walked away. "Ow…"**

 **-000-**

Nihilego fumbled as she took out the videotape from the cartridge.

"Where… are the videotapes… where are the footages for the maze and challenge?" she muttered franticly as she dropped the videotape to the floor with the other two.

She quickly took out her cellphone, dialling a specific number.

She frowned as another voice came from the phone. "Who's this?"

"Ahem. This is Nihilego. Did you send me all of the videotapes, Xurk?" Nihilego uttered worrily. "I think some are missing."

"I sent them all via wormhole already," replied Xurkitree.

Nihilego gulped. "Does that mean… someone stole the tapes?"

"Maybe."

"Is there any footage for the shed and the area near it?" Nihilego questioned.

"Nope. There are no cameras in the vicinity," answered Xurkitree. "You told me not to place any cameras there for privacy."

Nihilego tensed. "Oh no… then this case is as good as lost…"

"You can bribe the judge or something," suggested Xurkitree.

"Hmmm…"

Nihilego nodded, as she ended the call. "I think I know what to do…"

 **000**

 **"I hope that this works… Burst-senpai… Guzzy… other Nihilegoes, wish me luck." Nihilego muttered, sweating a bit.**

 **000**

Juvia looked around Vivian's lair in awe. The Roserade redecorated and refurbished it. Instead of a bookshelf, a cabinet stood in its plate. Inside were a lot of chemicals, ranging from acids to bases. In the middle of the room was a red carpet. On the carpet was a crude sculpture of a Roserade. Rubble scatted around the statue. There was also a door on the wall opposite to the entrance now.

"Ooh! A lot has changed," commented Juvia. She turned to the Roserade. "I didn't know you made art."

"As a villain, I, Chaos, have to be skillful in multiple fields!" Vivian enthused with a grin. She cleared her throat before cackling 'evilly'. "Now! The whole island's inhabitants would bow before me!"

"That sounds nice." Juvia said with an innocent expression.

"Ghost girl, tell me more about your boyfriend! He seems… to have an evil aura! We can work together!" Vivian intoned firmly.

"Well… a lot of casinos were all closed down after their owners went 'missing'. Izaya and I were the last customers," recalled Juvia, closing her eyes.

Vivan gaped. "That's impressive… I can tell that those owners harrassed you somewhat and Izaya disposed of them!"

"Izaya's a nice guy." Juvia mused with a smile.

"So… he's a vigilante!" concluded Vivian with a nod.

"What's a vigilante?" Juvia queried as the Shuppet hovered over the sculpture.

Vivian sighed, shaking her head. "Well… that aside, do you want to help me with my latest scheme?!"

"Let's just talk… like what friends do," suggested Juvia, casting a concerned look at the Roserade.

Vivian nodded as she squatted on the floor. "Okay then… let us now converse!"

"..."

"Soooo, what do you want tp talk about?" Vivian asked, furrowing a brow. Vivian cleared her throat. "Errr… how's life?"

"It's good," answered Juvia with a warm smile. Vivian could actually feel herself melting under the Shuppet's smile.

"I heard that you forgot about your birth and stuff." Vivian recalled with a nervous expression.

Juvia nodded with a weak smile. "I guess it's for the best… I'm quite clueless about most stuff." She smiled hopefully. "Thankfully… Izaya is there to help me…"

"Ah… he's quite an intriguing fellow," remarked Vivian.

The Shuppet chuckled. "He's not hiding anything. He's quite nice if you get to know him."

The Roserade looked thoughtfully as she slowly closed her eyes. "Tell me more…"

And so the two girl's conversation continued.

 **000**

 **"Vivian is so nice! She's not a bad guy like she says." Juvia enthused with a wide grin. She then murmured, volume lowering, "For once, I'm not the one asking questions…"**

 **000**

Back at the dining hall in the Winners' Lodge, some of the Noctowls were having a strange conversation.

"Maya… stop being bitter over your loss." Darren said to the Gardevoir soothingly. The Rhydon was now sitting across the gamer, who was looking at her lap with blank eyes.

Trevor, who was sitting next to the gamer, violently nudged her. "Hey! Darren's speaking to you so don't leave him hanging!"

"I lost… against… Otis." Maya mumbled to herself.

"She looks despondent," commented Favian, shaking his head. "I don't know what's wrong with her though…"

"Well… I'm her friend so I had to find a way to help her." Darren explained with a calm expression.

As Favian was about to reply, the door to the hall suddenly opened, Rae entering the room. The Noivern hastily closed the door, taking a seat next to the Slowking.

"Why are you sweaty?" Favian asked the Noivern in suspicion.

"..." Rae took a long sigh. "It's… personal…" The Noivern shuddered as the door swung open once more.

Raven entered the room, carrying an unconscious Jack with his front paws.

"Raven… Jack, you're back." Darren said with a weak smile. The Rhydon quickly noticed the injured Lampent. "What happened with Jack?"

Raven cackled before replying, "Pidgey swarm!"

"I think its Pidgey flock, not swarm." Favian corrected.

"Jack is a weakling if he lost against weak Pidgey." Trevor chuckled with a psychotic grin.

"You're crazy." Favian pointed out.

"Who cares?!" growled Trevor, rolling his eyes.

"I'm going to go back to planning my cult!" enthused Raven, dropping the Lampent on the floor. "Rae, please reconsider! We will poison-"

"Leave…" muttered Rae coldly.

The Absol rolled his eyes before exiting the room. The Noivern sighed, slouching on her chair.

 **-000-**

Izaya was leaning against a tree as he waited for Randall, who told him to go the woods. Usually, he would be suspicious but he trusted the Incineroar.

He readied himself as he heard some rustling from the bushes. He hastily took out a deck of what seems to be normal cards.

Randall, Ace, Junior, Clay and Breon emerged from the bushes shortly after. Izaya frownes as he noticed that Randall brought along Clay. He didn't trust the Timburr. He was first boot last time so the Crobat didn't know much about the Timburr except for the fact that he's a pet.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Izaya," apologizes Randall.

"It's okay… I owe you," muttered Izaya with a thoughtful expression, remembering the sewer episode last season.

"Ahem, now that we're all here now. I have gathered all of you for an alliance… a serious one. This season is four times longer than last time… and more competitors to look out for," started Randall with a serious expression. "As you already know, Alex went home last time."

"No shit, Sherlock," muttered Clay coldly, which was unusual for the usually reserved Timburr.

"Ahem. As I was saying, Alex went home last time. This means… the girls might have united against us… the newbies too maybe."

Junior frowned. "This… sounds bad."

"Of course it does," drawled Izaya, rolling his eyes. "If this continues, all of us would be gone before the merge."

"Sooo, we vote together as an alliance?" Breon queried. "I'm completely unfamiliar with this alliance thing. I was second boot last time."

Ace pushed back his glasses, clearing his throat. "I suppose… Ashley is part of the opposing alliance… I'm okay with eliminating her… but let's not be brash."

"I dunno… I'm pretty sure Poppy's not part of that alliance… how are we even sure its an alliance and not just a coincidence?" Junior questioned, crossing his arms.

"Junior… I'm pretty sure they're in an alliance," explained Randall. "Crimson, Ashley and Icy are part of that alliance. Ruby, Quentin and Serall seem to be part of another alliance too. Comf, Meowzer and Kaiser are swing votes. The others… I'm not sure about their alignments."

"That's quite observant of you," commented Junior with a weak smile.

"I agree with Randall… it's oretty obvious really," commented Izaya with a slow nod.

"Obvious? I didn't even caught a whiff of any alliance," scoffed Clay with a scowl planted on his face.

"To be honest… Poppy was acting shady once," admitted Breon.

"Poppy's always shady," chuckled Junior.

Izaya cleared his throat. "I'm not much of a fan of strategies… but I think we need luck for the plan… Kaiser, Comf, Evelyn and some others are quite unpredictable." He smirked. "But… they're quite predictable after a glance."

"You're a gambler so you could read people by their faces," pointed out Junior sheepishly.

Izaya frowned. "It's more… complicated than that…"

"Whatever oldman. I don't need a lecture," growled Clay, clenching his fists.

"First of all, I'm not that old. Second of all, no one can just talk back at me like that… and emerge unscathed." Izaya threatened with a sinister expression.

"Just give me back my everstone!" yelled Clay, falling to the ground as he began to cradle himself. "My… master won't like me now…"

Clay's eyes widened as a metal card struck the ground next to him.

Breon and Junior both eyed Izaya with gaping mouths.

"What was that for?" Junior questioned in disbelief.

Izaya took a deep breath before replying, "Clay… is getting… too… irrational. He's just going to set us up to fail." Izaya frowned. "Besides… Clay is a numskull. Who's to say he won't snitch us out."

"That may be a good reason but we can't injure anyone!" Ace said calmly.

Izaya sighed. "... I need some rest… my head is fucking killing me…" The Crobat tipped his fedora as he flew away from the clearing.

Randall weakly grinned. "Izaya… is quite nice… but he's very… violent to a specific few…"

"I'm surprised that he's always calm… he's like a different person without Juvia." Junior remarked, eyes bulging out in fear.

 **000**

 **Izaya smirked smugly. "For some reason… I respect Clay's courage to talk back…" His smirk suddenly turned into a frown. "But he's an idiot… and it's not funny…"**

 **000**

Back to the courtroom, Quentin and Ruby continued their debate while Nihilego was fetching the videotapes.

"Shrek is definitely innocent! Shrek is too frail to even injure a fly!" Ruby countered nervously.

"Frail? He's a fully grown Ursaring… he has the strength to break someone's back." Quentin said with a bored expression. He was getting quite bored… He should have won the case one hour ago but Ruby kept spouting random nonsense. Quentin yawned. "I'm getting tired with your incompetence to defend, smelly."

PJ blinked. "Ummm… that's not nice…"

Ruby scoffed at the Eeveelution. "Shut up, Quentin. As soon as Nihilego gets the videotapes, I would get the upper hand."

"The upper hand in losing." Quentin drawled, rolling his eyes.

"Well… I'm the president so my word is law!" Donald retorted with a triumphant smirk. "So by default, we win!"

"Donald, you're making it worse," huffed Ruby, annoyed.

"Ahem, order in the court!" Sophia yelled with a serious expression. "We should be organized with this. Are finished hearing PJ and Marina's accounts?"

Marina nodded. "Of course!"

"Ahem. Bailiff Alex, take PJ and Marina away now!" ordered Sophia as a Tyranitar lead the Pachirisu and Prinplup off the witness stands. "Okay… what should we discuss now?"

"Your poor social life?" Alex snarked from the jury.

"Shut up!" growled Sophia, gritting her teeth.

"Your Female Honor, I think we can say that I won," uttered Quentin with a small smirk.

"Not so fast, ribbon boy! Nihilego still has some more evidence!" Ruby blustered nervously.

"I can make that evidence disappear if you want," suggested Hazel, giddily waving his wand.

"Hmmmm… that's a tempting off you got there," commented Quentin with a smirk. "Either way, I win."

"Play nice, male!" Sophia chided the Sylveon. "We need to find the truth… the real truth… not buried underneath lies!"

"Wow… you're actually… non-biased?" Ruby remarked with a surprised expression. "I expected you to be like." Ruby began to imitate the Bastidon's voice. "I'm Sophia and I hate males! Males, bring me gherkin! Blah blah blah blah."

Surprisingly, the Bastiodon kept her composure as she furrowed a brow. "I'm a fair woman, Ruby. This is not just some game. This is the law!"

Ruby nodded, somehow for once, understanding the Bastiodon's motive.

Alex the Tyranitar then stomped his right foot repeatedly as a wormhole started to form behind him. "Nihilego's back!"

 **000**

 **"I'm… trying to mellow out… I still hate males though." Sophia explained with a huff.**

 **000**

Luke worriedly paced around in front of the door to Sora's room. Atticus yawned as he tapped the door with a paw.

"Atticus, do you think we'll catch Sora in a good mood… or will she kill me with a glare." Luke muttered to himself, sweating nervously.

Atticus gave him an odd look. "Calm down… every-"

The door suddenly opened. Luke yelped in fear, quickly jumping behind Atticus. Atticus yawned with an unfazed expression. Sora exited her room with a calm expression. Her leg was feeling better now. She stopped… scowling as she noticed Luke, hiding behind Atticus.

"Luke, you dipshit! Yo had the nerve to visit me… after breaking my leg!" Sora growled with an irked expression. She folded her wings, expecting a reply from the Taillow.

"Errr… errmm…" Luke instinctively kneeled before the Staraptor, cocking his head down in fear. "I- errrr… apologize!"

Sora frowned. She was not buying Luke's apology that easily. She quickly deadpanned. "Luke, I'm not dumb. If I know, you would mess up again and break both of my legs next time!"

"W-what?! No…" Luke stammered nervously, blushing in embarrassment.

Sora rolled her eyes. "Pfffffttt Luke, I'll be going if you're going to spout random BS."

As Sora prepared to leave, Luke quickly grabbed Sora's wing. Luke winced as Sora clenched her wings… which squeezes Luke's wing, which was grabbing onto Sora's.

"Sora… it hurts." Luke whimpered, starting to cry.

Sora looked indifferent, unaffected by Luke's crying. After a few seconds, Sora lets go of Luke.

"Tch. How pathetic. You're not even a physical threat," scoffed Sora, walking away leaving a cold air as she left.

Luke was still crying as he turned to Atticus, who was jotting down notes casually as he yawned.

"Atticus! Why didn't you back me up?!" Luke asked with a frown.

Atticus quickly flipped his notebook, revealing a troll face. "My feelings about this…" He mumbled.

Luke sighed as he caressed the wing which he used to grab Sora's. "... I need some time to think abou-"

The moment is then ruined once again because of Atticus's monotone laugh. "Hahahahahaha."

Luke groaned, face-winging. "Why… just why?!"

 **-000-**

Meowzer was breathing heavily as she leaned against an oak tree in the middle of the woods. Jester sat across her, eyeing her in concern.

Jester spoke up nervously, "Is something the matter?"

"It's nothing…" muttered Meowzer, crossing her arms as her breathing slowed down a bit. Meowzer's eyes focused on the Shiny Treeko's. "You don't have to stay here if you want…"

"D-don't worry… I can stay," stammered Jester, eyes shifting to the side nervously.

"You don't know what I have done, do you?" Meowzer murmured, eyes dimming under the shade of the tree. She bowed her head down with a sigh. "I thought… that this new season would be better… but it's starting to get…" Meowzer paused for a moment, putting her hands on her head before finishing, "... stressful."

"Errr… what did happen last season? I didn't watch… since Metilda kept… blocking the television…" Jester uttered with an indescribable expression… frustration.

"Jester… you and Metilda seem close, right?" Meowzer queried, regaining her composure as she regained eye contact with the gecko.

"Yeah… it's complicated." Jester shrugged with a weak smile.

Meowzer furrowed a brow. "Hmmm…"

"Are you… suspicious?" questioned Jester, clasping his hands as he looked away. "I c-can't tell too much…"

"Hmmm?"

"M-Meowzer, stop that! It's getting unnerving… I'll l-leave. See you t-tomorrow, I guess…" Jester yelled, quickly standing up to leave.

Jester gave the psychic feline one last look before running into the bushes.

Meowzer blinked in confusion. "An alliance, perhaps…" The Meowstic then winced as the bushes rustled and another contestant emerged.

It was Metilda.

The Bisharp's eyes were sharpened into a glare as Metilda looked around worriedly. "Where is he…" she mumbled to herself.

Meowzer shakily stood up, not wanting to confront the worried Bisharp. As she turned around, Metilda called out to her.

"You… have you seen Jester… I heard his voice coming from this area…" Metilda said to the Meowzer coldly. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "And… by coincidence, you're here too… did you something with him?"

"He was never here," lied Meowzer in an odd calm manner.

"Oh…" Metilda muttered, as her glare disappeared. She took a deep breath, turning away from the Meowstic. "Sorry for bothering you…" Metilda disappeared into the bushes without a word.

Meowzer wiped off some sweat on her forehead. "... that… was quite scary…" Meowzer sighed before walking away from the area.

 **000**

 **"In the course of two days, my stay here on this island has turned to shit…" Meowzer said solemnly. She quickly scowled. "I'm going to snap! I just… feel it!"**

 **000**

Luther hastily ran out of the mess hall. He hid under the table, curled up into a ball for two hours straight. Luther was shaking in fear. Clay's breakdown was taking a toll on his psyche. He stopped right in front of the girls' cabin. Icy… she would always make the Trubbish feel better when he's feeling down.

Luther scuttled to the entrance of the girls' cabin. With a gulp, he enters the cabin.

The cabin… was empty. But… there was only one girl in the cabin.

It was Icy.

Luther smiled as he approached the Froslass, who was sitting on her bed, contemplating. Luther tapped the Froslass' shoulder from behind… and Luther was surprised…

Icy was scowling. The Froslass glared at Luther, gritting her teeth. "GET OUT! CAN'T YOU SEE I'M THINKING HERE?!"

Luther yelped. He was surprised that the Froslass was furious for some reason. Luther sighed, realizing that he came at a wrong time. "Icy… s-sorry… I can leave if you want…"

"LEAVE!" growled Icy, turning away from the Trubbish. In all honesty, Icy was still pissed about Luther getting burnt by lava and the Noctowls not even care about Azure… but Luther didn't know that.

Luther quickly bursted into tears. "I'm sorry if I'm useless! I can- can't even build anything! I can't…" Luther's face quickly froze as he turned to exit the room.

By the time Luther was gone, Icy blinked her eyes in realization. "Luther?"

 **-000-**

Ruby, Donald, Hazel and Quentin all had confused expressions as Nihilego was now whispering something onto the Bastiodon's ear. After Nihilego arrived, the jellyfish quickly floated to Sophia and they're been whispering to each other for minutes already.

"What are they talking 'bout?" Donald whispered to Ruby in confusion.

Ruby shrugged. "I dunno. Ask errr… Cuntin!"

"Your nicknames are so bland," commented Quentin dryly.

Before Ruby can reply, Sophia cleared her throat as Nihilego floated next to Ruby with a nervous expression.

"The trial is now adjourned… due to some circumstances." Sophia revealed dryly. "Sooo, you can all return to the island or whatever."

"What?" Quentin screeched in disbelief. "You can't just abruptly end the trial… that's so anticlimactic…"

"Well… a lot of things happened and I need some rest," reasoned Sophia sternly.

Quentin looked slightly pissed before muttering, "Fine…"

Hazel clapped his hands. "MY TIME SPELL WORKED! THE TRIAL ENDED!"

Quentin was tempted to glare at the Fennekin but restrained himself.

Nihilego clapped her tentacles in glee. "This anticlimactic trial is now over! It's time to return to the island! I have some announcements to make there!"

A wormhole appeared above Sophia and the jury. Sophia, Alex and Septh all sighed as they disappeared into the portal. The wormhole then dissipitated.

Moments later, another wormhole appeared on the ceiling of the courtroom. Everyone in the courtroom all disappeared into the portal after being sucked into it.

The anticlimactic trial was now over.

Shrek is found to be… [REDACTED]

 **-000-**

Flint giggled as he sat by the lake, where he had his first serious talk with Zane. Sitting on his lap was a magazine containing explicit content of… male Pokemon, mostly Incineroar, Machoke and Gurdurr.

"What'cha reading?" came a stern yet friendly voice.

Flint looks up from his magazine, rotating his head. He smiled as Zane approached him. Usually, he was the one approaching others.

Flint waved at the Zangoose, gesturing for him to sit next to him. Zane smiled back as he sitted next to the Golduck.

Flint closed his magazine, turning to Zane. "Soooo Zane, how are you?"

"Meh. It's fine, I guess…" shrugged Zane, staring at the lake in thought.

"Hmmm… I think you're thinking about personal stuff," deduced Flint, crossing his arms. "You told me that you had issues with your father… and I think there's more to that…" His eyes bore into the Zangoose's. "You're gay, right?"

Zangoose blinked in surprise. "W-what? H-how can you say that? I'm perfectly straight! Hetero, not homo, hehehehehe…"

"Zane… I'm serious… you can tell me, I'm gay too," intoned Flint calmly.

Zane sighed in defeat. "I didn't think… someone would actually find out…" Zane bowed his head with a shudder. "My… father might be watching this… and he won't like it…" He turned to Flint. "How did you know about it?"

Flint shrugged, turning to the lake. "I knew since the ring toss challenge. You were acting pretty funny around me when we were with Violet…"

"Oh well…" mumbled Zane, staring at the Golduck. "I'm a little glad that someone knows though…"

"SANDGOOSE AND SANDUCK, PLEASE HEAD TO THE MAIN CAMPGROUNDS! NIHILEGO IS BECKONING!" chimed in Otis' voice from nearby.

Zane stood up then helps Flint up. "Let's go, Flint… hell awaits…"

Flint nodded as he followed Zane into the forest.

 **000**

 **"Flint… is quite nice… this is enough to prove my dad wrong." Zane said simply.**

 **000**

The remaining contestants all stood in front of Nihilego, who clasped her tentacles nervously. Quentin and Ruby were both back from the trial, standing with the Octilleries.

"Sooo… what heroic decree are you going to impose?" Lance queried, rubbing his chin in confusion.

"Ahem… we'll be having an elimination ceremony… after this announcement!" Nihilego divulged, rubbing the back of her head nervously.

"What?!" Junior questioned in disbelief.

"Yep, the Octilleries are the ones going to elimination after this. The Noctowls can leave though," added Nihilego.

"That's so unfair!" Breon argued dryly.

Nihilego shrugged. "Sorry if this is out of nowhere… buuuut, elimination awaits!"

 **000**

 **Junior sighed. "This sucks… I hope that I don't get voted off out of nowhere… that would suck…"**

 **000**

 **"I want to leave," said Luther with a nonchalant expression. "I just… can't…" Luther's face froze as he abruptly exited the confessional.**

 **000**

The Octilleries were all silently seated around the bonfire. This elimination surprised them very much so they didn't plan out much. Nihilego faced the team… though, it can be noted that the tray of poffins that she usually held was nowhere to be found.

"Octilleries… as you can see… I have no poffins to hand out… this is because…" Nihilego paused for suspense before continuing. "There's no voting tonight."

Ashley furrowed a brow. "Then, how are we supposed to know who leaves?"

"Coin flip, maybe?" Comf suggested with a shrug.

"No! No coin flips, okay!" Nihilego growled, slightly irritated. "Luck… is one territory I won't cross…" She shook her head as she smiled weakly. "Nope… someone would be choosing who would leave."

Quentin raised his paw. "Is it me? I did beat Smelly after all."

"No, you didn't! The trial was cut short!" pointed out Ruby with a scowl.

Nihilego quickly shushed the two as a wormhole frowned behind her. "Please… let us welcome back for this time only… SOPHIA!"

The feminazi emerged from the wormhole with a triumphant expression. Most of the guys all gulped, knowing Sophia's hatred for them.

Poppy waved at Sophia. "Heyo Sophia!"

Sophia rolled her eyes as she stood next to Nihilego. "Okay! I would be the one choosing the eliminated… and tonight… it would be a double elimination."

"What?" Junior gaped in disbelief. "That would put us in a major disadvantage."

Sophia giggled. "And I already know who I'm picking… the first one I choose is…"

…

…

…

…

…

"Junior obviously!" Sophia revealed, turning to the blue Incineroar.

Junior was now slumped on his stump in disbelief. He took a deep breath as he stood up.

Poppy blinked in disbelief. "Oh no…"

Randall shared a somber expression as Poppy but remained silent.

Junior silently walked to the docks. The Brionne follows after him. After the duo left, Sophia continued.

"I'm still not done," chuckled Sophia, stomping her feet. She was enjoying this. "And the second one leaving is…"

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

"Ru-"

"SOPHIA, STOP!" Luther quickly interjected. He bowed his head down as he slowly stood up. "I… want to leave…"

"B-but Luther!" Icy countered. "You can't leave me…"

"I… don't want to suffer anymore," was Luther's words as he dramatically walked to the docks.

Sophia blinked in surprise. "Wow… that was out of nowhere… welp, gotta go now! Nihilego, take me back to where I was!"

Nihilego snapped her tentacles and a wormhole appears sucking up Sophia. "Well… that was quicker than I thought…"

Icy slumped on her chair with a frown. "I can't believe it… Luther… did it…"

 **000**

 **"I'm gone now… which is quite a bummer," admitted Junior, folding his arms. "Poppy broke up with me… and I get eliminated. I stayed under the radar this season… but it seems that it didn't work…"**

 **000**

 **"I don't care…" muttered Luther.**

 **000**

Poppy hugged Junior as they stood on the docks. A boat was waiting at the end since the Boot of Shame suddenly broke down.

Junior then releases Poppy from his tight grip. "Errr… I'll be seeing you, I guess…"

Poppy giggled. "Yep! Have fun!"

Junior smiled at the Brionne before boarding the boat. Luther waddled past Poppy without uttering a word, quickly boarding the boat.

"Luther?" Poppy called out… but it was too late. The boat started to float away from the docks, disappearing into the fog.

(Farewell Junior and Luther…)

 **-000-**

Otis chuckled maniacally as he stood next to a large sand pit. Favian, Lance, Maya and Darren all gaped at its deepness. Hazel stood next to the Stoutland, fiddling with his wand. Quentin, who had just came back from the elimination, stood next to the other four Noctowls, holding a bucket of syrup.

"SYLVEON OF SAND, WHY DID YOU ASK ME TO DIG YOU A HOLE?!" Otis asked Quentin, gesturing to the large pit.

Quentin smiled as he poured the syrup onto the pit. "It's nothing…" The Sylveon giddily jumped into the pool of syrup and began floating on it. "Ah… it feels warm and tingly on my fur."

Otis gaped, rubbing his eyes. "My oh my, you're swimming in honey!" Otis shuddered. "I'll be taking my leave now…"

Otis walks away. Maya and Darren reluctantly followed.

Favian merely nodded in fascination. "This is interesting…"

"If you want to, you can jump into that heroic pool!" Lance pointed out.

Favian shook his head. "I'm sorry but I cannot."

"I can levitate you," suggested Hazel, eagerly waving his wand.

Favian sighed. "I guess…"

Favian, Lance and Hazel started to bond. Quentin merely closed his eyes, slightly annoyed.

The camera then panned to the forest where a pair of eyes watched the group from a distance before disappearing deeper into the forest.

 **-000-**

 **Okay, the last part was rushed. I was getting lazy xD. This was sorta a breather chap so it's relatively short.**

 **Junior and Luther are both gone now. Not like it mattered or anything. I won't talk much bout them since they were pretty much background characters.**

 **Junior, he was… just there for the season so welp.**

 **Luther was supposed to last longer but I decided to axe him early.**

 **That's all for now. Seeya~**

 **-000-**

 **Junior: Review!**


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